Wonderful Word Names for Boys

Despite its somewhat menacing meaning, this name has been widely used in recent years, probably due to the appeal of its trendy on ending.

Many parents seeking a return to more basic values and a simpler lifestyle are turning to such virtuous girls' names as Grace, Faith, and Hope, but there are a handful that work just as well on boys, including True.

The potential it had was squashed by the spiked seltzer brand.

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.

Vale is part place name, part nature name -- a poetic term for a type of valley. Today Show coanchor Savannah Guthrie put Vale on the baby name map when she chose it for her daughter, but there's no reason the name can't work equally well for a boy. Vale might also be a short form for Valentine or a spelling variation of the city name Vail.

Honor and bravery are certainly virtues any parent would want to encourage, and this word itself is obscure enough that it manages to sound like a real name.

Wade has never been outside the US Top 1000 for boys - there's a reason for that. It has a clean spelling, fresh sound and is neither too trendy (unlike Kade or Cade) or too old-school (like Richard or Albert). We think Wade is a winning name.

Long lingering in limbo, Warren suddenly seems to be on the cusp of revival. One of the oldest recorded English surnames, Warren's popularity in the U.S. dates back to the nineteenth century, and by 1921, reached its peak at Number 24.

Will has definitely replaced Bill, not only as a nickname for William but as a stand-alone name as well, partly thanks to England's Prince William, also known as Wills.

Wolf is a name with a split personality. It can be seen as one of the fierce animal names, like Fox and Bear and Puma, with a touch of the werewolf, or it can be viewed as a quieter, Wolf Blitzer kind of name, fairly common in German (where is pronounced Vulf) and Jewish families, sometimes as a short form of Wolfgang, or even Wolfram or Wolfhart.