tocayo
/toˈkaʝo/masculine
The Spanish word for namesake is tocayo.
tocayo is used to describe a person who shares the same given name. While the English word namesake can refer to a person, place or thing, in Spanish tocayo is most commonly used specifically between people who share the same first name.
Meaning: person, place or thing named after another person, place or thing (noun)
Which one should you use?
The term tocayo is the masculine form, whereas tocaya is used when referring to a female namesake.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Spain, the term homónimo may commonly be used to refer to a namesake.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word changes its ending based on gender and number: tocaya is the feminine singular form, tocayos is the masculine plural form for a group of males or a mixed group and tocayas is the feminine plural form for a group of females.
How do you pronounce it?
/toˈkaʝo/
Did you know?
- The word tocayo is believed to have roots in the Nahuatl word tōcāyoh, which translates to 'one who has a name' or 'person of renown'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, finding out someone is your tocayo acts as a social tool to instantly break the ice and build rapport between strangers.
- While 'namesake' in English often describes a child named after a parent, tocayo is used as a social bond between two strangers who happen to share a name.
Examples in context
- Me encontré con mi tocayo en la fiesta de anoche.I ran into my namesake at last night's party.
- Hola, tocayo.Hello, namesake.
- Él es mi tocayo.He is my namesake.
- Tengo un tocayo en la escuela.I have a namesake at school.
Example conversation
Mateo introduces himself to someone with the same name.
- MateoHola, me llamo Mateo.Hello, my name is Mateo.
- SofíaYo también me llamo Mateo.I am also named Mateo.
- Mateo¡Qué bien! Eres mi tocayo.How great! You are my namesake.
- SofíaSí, es un nombre muy bonito.Yes, it is a very beautiful name.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “namesake” translations and entries tocayo, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries tocayo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
