to name
onomazo denotes assigning or using a name, including identifying people, families, and things by that name.
The occurrences chiefly show a name being used to identify, designate, or mention someone or something: a person bears a brother’s name, Christ is named, and certain conduct is not to be named. The verb also marks the assigning of titles or names and, in one verse, the attempted invocation of the name of the Lord Jesus.
Senses in use
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Using a name for identification or mention · dominant
Present passive forms describe what is named or identified: in 1 Corinthians 5:11 the APB renders a person as one who “bears the name of brother,” while Ephesians 1:21 speaks of “every name that is named.” In Ephesians 5:3 the clause says certain conduct must not even be named, and Romans 15:20 places the passive form in the statement that Christ was not named.
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Assigning a title or family designation · common
The aorist active form occurs where individuals receive a designation: in Luke 6:13 the APB renders the chosen twelve as those whom he “named apostles,” and Luke 6:14 says Simon was “named Peter.” Ephesians 3:15 uses a present passive form for every family line that “is named.”
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Invoking a name in an attempted adjuration · rare
In Acts 19:13, the present active infinitive stands in the exorcists’ attempt to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over people with evil spirits; the APB renders their spoken formula, “I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul proclaims.”
In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB varies its presentation with the clause: “bears the name of brother,” “named,” “is named,” and “invoke the name.” These renderings show the surrounding clauses rather than a fixed English equivalent for every occurrence.