Picking a MN Based on Meaning?

Hey namers!

As you may have noticed, we’ve been trying to decide a middle name for our baby girl, [name_f]Lucy[/name_f], due in [name_u]August[/name_u]. We have some great options, but still have yet to make any decisions. We’ve only been going off of sound and looks, but now I’m wondering if we should start considering meanings and see if any of them particularly resonate with us after knowing what it means.

First off, [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] means light. In case anyone is curious or didn’t know.

Now, here’s our middle name options and their meanings…

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And here is how I personally feel about each one and their meaning…

[name_f]Adelaide[/name_f] - [name_m]Noble[/name_m] is a word with such a rich meaning. For me it’s a strong meaning with lots of class.

[name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] - She who brings happiness. I get a sweet, bubbly and overall good vibe from this name and it’s meaning. Our little [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] has brought us so much happiness thus far and I know she will bring happiness to many others in her life.

[name_f]Colette[/name_f] - [name_m]French[/name_m] surname. Sounds great with [name_f]Lucy[/name_f], but this meaning/where it comes from is bleh. Nothing special.

[name_f]Cosette[/name_f] - [name_m]Little[/name_m] thing. Sweet meaning for a baby girl. It makes the name more cutesy and less mature for me.

[name_f]Harriet[/name_f] - Estate ruler. Like [name_f]Colette[/name_f], I think it sounds nice with [name_f]Lucy[/name_f], but the meaning isn’t doing much for me. I simply like it for the sound and it’s quirky vintage vibes.

[name_f]Helena[/name_f] - [name_u]Bright[/name_u] shining light. Honestly, I probably like this middle name option the least when I see and hear it with [name_f]Lucy[/name_f]. But it’s meaning makes the name step up for me. Especially with [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] meaning light. It pairs together nicely. But is two names that mean light too much for one full name?

[name_u]Juniper[/name_u] - Type of tree. The meaning actually turns me off a bit. I’m not big into nature names at all. They just aren’t really my style. However, DH loves nature, trees, birds, etc. So, this meaning is special to him/us in that way. I mostly like [name_u]Juniper[/name_u] for it’s quirky/whimsicalness. I think [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_u]Juniper[/name_u] sounds best together out of all the middle name options we have.

[name_f]Matilda[/name_f] - Mighty strength/power in battle. This might be my favorite. If it’s not, then it’s a very close second with [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]. For my daughter, I want all good things for her. But if there’s one thing I think of most when I think of having a daughter, it’s how much I wish her to be strong, courageous and brave. Which I feel like she already is strong and mighty with how often she kicks lol! Maybe this name fits her in that way.

[name_f]Violet[/name_f] - Color purple. Obvious meaning. But I’m into it. Not because I love purple or anything, but because I love what people associate the color purple with. Creativity, wisdom, peace, mystery, magic and royalty.

I love picking names this way! I should really do it more often, because I usually base my combos purely off sound

My top 3 from your options are [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f], [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Violet[/name_f]

I like the combined meaning of [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f], “she who brings happiness and light”
For [name_f]Matilda[/name_f], I totally agree with what you said, they are all great qualities for a girl to have.
With [name_f]Violet[/name_f], I love the imagery, and like you said the associations people have with the colour…I also like the idea of the combined meaning “purple light”

If I had to rank the three from favorite to least, I’d say…*

  1. [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]
  2. [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Violet[/name_f]
  3. [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]
    *taking into consideration both the meaning and the sound of the combo

I love picking names this way! I should really do it more, because I usually base my combos purely off sound

My top 3 from your options are [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f], [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Violet[/name_f]

I like the combined meaning of [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f], “she who brings happiness and light”
For [name_f]Matilda[/name_f], I totally agree with what you said, they are all great qualities for a girl to have.
With [name_f]Violet[/name_f], I love the imagery, and like you said the associations people have with the colour…I also like the idea of the combined meaning “purple light”

If I had to rank the three from favorite to least, I’d say…*

  1. [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]
  2. [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Violet[/name_f]
  3. [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]
    *taking into consideration both the meaning and the sound of the combo

It might help you to narrow down your choices if you took meanings into account!

I personally like [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Violet[/name_f] best :slight_smile: I totally get where you are coming from when you say you like the associations with the color purple.

I love [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] and [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] the most for you. :slight_smile:

[name_f]Colette[/name_f] is also a [name_m]French[/name_m] nickname for [name_f]Nicole[/name_f], so if that helps, you could say it means “people/person of victory”.

If I put the names in order of strictly how much I personally like the meaning, then the list would be:

[name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]
[name_f]Adelaide[/name_f]
[name_f]Violet[/name_f]
[name_f]Colette[/name_f] (if using the meaning of [name_f]Nicole[/name_f])
[name_f]Helena[/name_f] (although I agree the meaning is a bit repetitive when paired with [name_f]Lucy[/name_f])
[name_u]Juniper[/name_u]
[name_f]Matilda[/name_f]
[name_f]Harriet[/name_f]
[name_f]Cosette[/name_f]

But based just on sound and looks:

[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Adelaide[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Helena[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_u]Juniper[/name_u]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Colette[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Violet[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Harriet[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Cosette[/name_f]

I like [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] the best.

I’ve always loved the idea of combined first/middle meanings, since that’s what my dad with my name, and something I’m adamant about incorporating into my first daughter’s name. And having a first with such a definite and clear meaning like [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] really gives a perfect opportunity.

My favourite would be [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]. [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] has a uniquely wonderful meaning, imagery, style; she really adds some extra fun and personality to any name. Runners up would be [name_f]Adelaide[/name_f], [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] (I love the strength meaning, it’s a quality I’d really want any child of mine to have), and [name_f]Helena[/name_f], mostly because their meanings are more direct if that’s what you’re going for. [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Adelaide[/name_f] sound great too, although I think the latter is softer, gentler, and more calm than [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]/[name_f]Matilda[/name_f]. It could depend on her personality which one’s best, and I’m inclined to think [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] or [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f].

[name_f]Lucy[/name_f]'s [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] is gorgeous!!

This is something I admittedly haven’t done before. I prefer to go with something that we love already rather than have to chase down something with a particular meaning. I say this because I don’t think you should feel obligated or trapped into liking something just for its meaning or out of liking something because of its meaning. Not saying that you are, but I’m just saying I hope you don’t feel any pressure or anything :slight_smile: I think it is a great idea to do if you already have a handful of names you can’t choose from, so decide to use their meanings to help you reach a decision :slight_smile:

Anyhow, based on meanings and sounds…I like [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Adelaide[/name_f] and [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] the best.

[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f]

Me, too! I usually just pick names based on sound and don’t look at meanings until much later. I do like the meaning of her first name, but we didn’t pick it because of that. So, I’m loving the idea of picking her middle name based off meaning.

[name_u]Love[/name_u] and appreciate your thoughts! I definitely think [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] have the sweetest meaning when put together. It and [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] are definitely my favorites.

Very true! I think this weekend, when DH and I have a little more time together to discuss names, I’ll go through all the names and their meanings with him so we can narrow it down. If it was up to me, I’d narrow it to [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Adelaide[/name_f], [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f], [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_u]Juniper[/name_u]. AND maybe [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Violet[/name_f] just because it’s been a favorite of ours for awhile.

Those are my favorites, too! :slight_smile: Unfortunately, I don’t think DH is too crazy about either or them. But maybe when hearing the meaning, he’ll get more on board lol.

I didn’t even think of that - thank you for explaining that to me! I greatly appreciate your thoughts!

Such good points! And I have to agree… at this point, I feel like she’s going to be on sassy, fully of personality kinda girl. I learn more towards names like [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] and [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f], just because they feel more literary to me. But [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_f]Adelaide[/name_f] has such a sweet sound to me and feel a bit unexpected.

I totally agree! Hints why when occasionally I find a meaning I love and I use Nameberry’s search by meaning and if I struggle with finding a name that I like even a little bit, I just give up lol. But yes, these names were already picked for their sounds and looks, so I personally could find happiness from any of them. My DH on the other hand is a little more picky lol.

To everyone else who commented so far - thank you all for taking the time to read and share your thoughts! <3

Meanings are probably the first thing I think of when it comes to naming!

From your options I like [name_f]Violet[/name_f] the most.
The color purple gives me that same mystical, magical, whimsical vibe that it gives you and violets are one of my favorite flowers (I love way too many to have a #1 but purple and blue flowers tend to be my favorites). It just feels very whimsical and classy to me.

I also love [name_f]Beatrix[/name_f] and [name_f]Helena[/name_f].

Lucy Beatrix is my favourite of your choices, I really love the combined meaning and Beatrix is my favourite girls name. I also agree with pp that Lucy Matilda and Lucy Violet are fantastic options as well!

Edit: Although meanings are not the most important part of a name, I do think it is lovely if the name has a significant (or just lovely) meaning for the parents and child. I tend to choose combinations based on a combined meaning. But then at present I’m just dreaming up possible names, I may change my mind when doing it for Real!