Search Dictionary
Definition of james
james
/dʒeɪmz/
james
Plural:Jameses
james Lexical Profile
CEFR
A1
Grade
2
Tier
1
Usage
Top 1k
james Game Scores & Validity
Scrabble US
Scrabble UK
WWF
Wordle Guess
• noun
1
A traditional and widely used male given name of Hebrew origin, historically meaning 'supplanter'.
Example
"James introduced himself to the new members of the committee before the meeting began."
2
A book of the New Testament in the Christian Bible, traditionally in the form of an epistle attributed to James, the brother of Jesus.
Example
"The pastor read a brief passage from the Book of James during the Sunday morning service."
• Rhymes for james
Word Origin & Etymology
From Middle English James, from Old French James, derived from Vulgar Latin *Iacomus, a variant of Latin Iacobus, which ultimately comes from Hebrew Ya'aqov (Jacob).
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of James. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 13, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/james