155+ Names That Mean Trouble

  1. Kessie
    • Origin:

      African, Ashanti
    • Meaning:

      "chubby baby"
    • Description:

      Kessie is cute but slight.
  2. Osman
    • Origin:

      Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "baby bustard"
    • Description:

      Its most famous bearer was Prince Osman the First, founder of the Ottoman Empire, the third caliph of the Muslims, and a companion and son-in-law of Muhammad. Osman is sometimes written as Usman.
  3. Shenzi
    • Origin:

      African, Swahili
    • Meaning:

      "savage"
    • Description:

      The name of the hyena character in The Lion King was clearly chosen for it's villainous meaning—not exactly one you want for a baby, but if you can get past that, it's a nice name.
  4. Axe
    • Origin:

      Word name
    • Description:

      Axe, spelled like this, is used for a handful of baby boys in the US each year. You can see it as one of the new weapon names, along with Dagger and Beretta, or as an abbreviation of the very popular Axel.
  5. Mahlon
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "sickly"
    • Description:

      Obscure Old Testament name -- he was the son of Naomi and the husband of Ruth -- that's become even more obscure over the past century, perhaps due to its unappealing meaning.
  6. Medea
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "middle"
    • Description:

      Mythological princess who killed her kids. Eternal no-no.
  7. Aleela
    • Origin:

      Swahili
    • Meaning:

      "she cries"
    • Description:

      Lilting African name that translates perfectly into other cultures.
  8. Havoc
    • Origin:

      English word name
    • Meaning:

      "widespread destruction"
    • Description:

      This aggressive baby boy name has been sitting at the bottom of the charts since 2008.
  9. Goku
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "aware of emptiness"
    • Description:

      Goku is the name of the protagonist of the popular "Dragon Ball" manga series, which was turned into a live action film. The character of Goku is reportedly based on Sun Wukong, the hero of the Chinese legend Journey to the West.
  10. Ascella
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "armpit"
    • Description:

      A star system in Sagittarius, so one of the most appropriate names for December babies.
  11. Striker
    • Origin:

      English word name
    • Description:

      Striker is one of the new gang of boys' names that have two syllables, end in -er, spring from words, and have a macho, even aggressive meaning and image. Other examples include Breaker, Heller, and Wilder. Do the world a favor and desist.
  12. Akuma
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "devil, demon"
    • Description:

      Nice baby name with a devilish meaning.
  13. Cutter
    • Origin:

      English occupational surname
    • Meaning:

      "tailor, barber"
    • Description:

      Cutter was an old-fashioned term for a tailor or barber that was eventually adopted as a surname. That gives it more legitimacy than many of the other aggressive boy names — Striker, Shooter, Breaker, et al. — but Cutter remains equally threatening.
  14. Alea
    • Origin:

      Variation of Aleah or Italian word name
    • Meaning:

      "risk"
    • Description:

      Alea is a genuine girls' name as a sleeker variation of Aleah, a name with both Arabic and Persian roots that means exalted or God's being. But in Italian, Alea means risk or hazard, so it can also be considered an Italian word name...but a risky one.
  15. Rekker
    • Origin:

      Variation of Wrecker
    • Meaning:

      "a person or thing that wrecks or damages something"
    • Description:

      Rekker comes to us thanks to actor Cam Gigandet, who gave his son this phonetic spelling of badass word name Wrecker. Use at your own peril.
  16. Wrangler
    • Origin:

      English word name
    • Meaning:

      "cowboy; person who disputes"
    • Description:

      Rugged, rustic Wrangler evokes cowboy charm, bootcut denim, and SUVs.
  17. Yosemite
    • Origin:

      Native American tribal name
    • Meaning:

      "those who kill"
    • Description:

      The evocative name of one of our most beautiful national parks -- yes, but also the bombastic cartoon character, Yosemite Sam.
  18. Talman
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "injured, oppressed"
    • Description:

      Extremely rare yet with an on trend sound, although the meaning may put parents off.
  19. Stormi
    • Origin:

      Word name, variation of Stormy and Storm
    • Description:

      Stormi is like Sunni, with angst. If naming your child Storm or Stormy is asking for trouble, naming her Stormi -- as Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott did -- is asking for trouble of several different kinds. But we're sure she'll be adorable and as celebrity baby names go, this one is nearly normal.
  20. Sharar
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "enemy"
    • Description:

      Biblical name from the Old Testament.

The Nameberry App Is Live

Nameberry app screenshot
Find your perfect baby name together in our iPhone app, now available on the App Store.
  • Swipe through thousands of names with your partner
  • Names you match on are saved to your shared list
  • Get personalized recommendations that learn based on your and your partner's preferences
  • Partner with friends and family to find names you all love
  • Backed by Nameberry's 20 years of data around name preferences.
Download on the App Store
Nameberry app screenshot