One-Syllable Baby Names

As Tyler has begun to recede, a number of parents, including the Wayne Gretzkys, have cut straight to the livelier short form.

You might think of this as the zesty brother of Cade and Slade. Or Zade might appeal to you as an anglicized spelling of the Arabic Zayd or Zaid, the name of an enslaved man that Muhammad adopted as his son.

A sweet, uplifting and still fairly uncommon modern virtue name. Its single syllable makes it especially good as a middle name, but it would also make a big impact in the first spot.

As the common short form of Zachary or, more unusually, Zachariah, Zack is less intuitive than Zach or Zac in terms of spelling but clearer in terms of pronunciations. Maybe because it rhymes with Jack and Mack, it also feels more complete as a name. Some people also use Zack and brothers as a short form of Isaac.

Win is an upbeat, can-do name that can be a short form of one of the buttoned-up British choices above or can stand on its own. Welsh Wyn is another possibility.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and singer Ciara named their son Win Harrison. Harrison is Wilson's father's first name.

Kanye West and Kim Kardashian added this new word name to the lexicon when they chose it for their second son and fourth child in 2019. It is now 7 times more popular than it was then, given to 120 boys and 40 girls in a recent year.

Though it's used far more often for boys, Lyle has a lot in common with today's trending girl names that share the double L sound: Lila, Layla, and Lola.

Until recently, Vernon and its short form Vern seemed like grandpa names not ready for revival, but now we can see it happening. Never the popular, Vern works particularly well as a middle name.

The field of nature names is constantly expanding to include all species of flowers and trees and animals and birds and even fish. In addition to its appeal for anglers, Pike recalls Zebulon Pike, the explorer who discovered and gave his name to Pike's Peak.

Despite its modern sound, Blaise has plenty of history as a given name (for boys), from a Christian martyr to Arthurian legends. Today Blaise feels like the cool and edgy Blaze with a French accent.

Brisk but rather brittle. Britt Eklund was a Bond Girl in the 1974 The Man with the Golden Gun. Britt is a contracted form of Birgit, but be aware that it does come with the strong possibility of being confused with Bret/Brett—or as a shortening of Brittany.

True has become an accepted first and middle name; Truth makes an even stronger statement. And with nearly 150 baby boys named Truth in the US in the most recent year counted, as many as were named Ross, the word name is edging up on the Top 1000.

An early unisex nature name that has been surpassed by others, Dale is still a simple, sylvan and serene option.

Cool, serene name of the Egyptian river can make a fresh choice for a girl. The origin of river name Nile relates to the Arabic and ancient Hebrew word for dark blue or indigo; in ancient Egyptian, its literal meaning is river.

A straightforward, down-to-earth nickname many Walters, from Whitman to Disney, have chosen to go by.

This color name, spelled either Gray or Grey is rapidly catching on. Actress Jenny von Oy recently called her daughter Gray Audrey.

Although she declared her independence as far back as the reign of Elizabeth I--Good Queen Bess, Bess now sounds less passé than Beth or Betsy.

An inspirational and aspirational word name that evokes ideas of loyalty, faith, honesty, and accuracy, True is a unisex name, which is just slightly more popular for boys. Like an updated form of Trudy and Prue and with the virtuous feel of Grace, Faith, and Hope, True was given to around 200 girls in 2023.

Branch is an attractive name with associations both with trees and with branching out into brave new worlds. Baseball's Branch (born Wesley, with Branch as his middle name) Rickey broke the color barrier by hiring Jackie Robinson for the Dodgers. Like Leaf, Branch makes a nice, not-so-obvious, addition to the tree category.

May be the most modern, stylish Catherine nickname: more unusual than Kate or Cate, with an animal and word name edge. Cat Power is a trendy folksinger.