174 one-syllable boy baby names

Short stuff: One-syllable baby names for boys

Sometimes, all you need is a short word — a single-syllable name to use as your baby’s first name, as just a part of his first name, or as a middle name. You might be trying to match a sound, or give his full name a certain rhythm that needs just one more sound.

Here, in alphabetical order, we present you with more than 170 short and to-the-point baby names suitable for a baby boy.

ALSO SEE: 100 one-syllable girl baby names | 100 two-syllable boy baby names

List of 174 1-syllable boy baby names

1. Art: Often a short form of “Arthur.”
2. Bear: Animal-inspired, strong and rugged.
3. Beau: French origin, means “handsome.”
4. Blake: Old English origin, means “dark” or “fair.”
5. Blaine: Gaelic origin, means “yellow.”
6. Blaise: Latin origin, means “stutter” or “lisp.”
7. Blaze: Modern, inspired by the word “blaze.”
8. Blue: Color-inspired, modern and unique.
9. Bo: Scandinavian origin, means “to live.”
10. Boone: French origin, means “a blessing.”
11. Brant: German origin, means “firebrand.”
12. Brock: Old English origin, means “badger” or “stream.”
13. Brooks: Nature-inspired, refers to a small stream.
14. Bruce: Scottish origin, from the place name “Brix.”
15. Bryce: Celtic origin, means “swift.”
16. Cade: Old English origin, means “barrel.”
17. Cal: Often a short form of “Calvin.”
18. Cale: Modern, possibly a variant of “Kyle.”
19. Carl: German origin, means “free man.”
20. Cash: Modern, often associated with money or a nickname for “Cassius.”
21. Chance: English origin, means “fortune.”
22. Chad: Old English origin, means “warrior” or “protector.”
23. Charles: French origin, means “free man.”
24. Chase: English origin, means “to hunt.”
25. Chet: Often a short form of “Chester.”
26. Chris: Often a short form of “Christopher” or “Christian.”
27. Clark: Old English origin, means “clerk” or “scholar.”
28. Clay: Nature-inspired, named after the earth material.
29. Cliff: Nature-inspired, refers to a steep rock face.
30. Cole: Old English origin, means “swarthy, coal-black.”
31. Craig: Scottish origin, means “rock” or “crag.”
32. Cruz: Spanish origin, means “cross.”
33. Dale: Old English origin, means “valley.”
34. Dan: Often a short form of “Daniel.”
35. Dane: English origin, means “from Denmark.”
36. Dave: Usually a short form of “David.”
37. Dean: Old English origin, means “valley.”
38. Drake: English origin, means “dragon.”
39. Drew: Often a short form of “Andrew.”
40. Duke: Latin origin, means “leader.”
41. Earl: Old English origin, means “nobleman” or “warrior.”
42. Finn: Irish origin, means “white” or “fair.”
43. Flint: Nature-inspired, refers to a type of rock.
44. Flynn: Irish origin, means “son of the red-haired one.”
45. Ford: Old English origin, means “river crossing.”
46. Frank: Often a short form of “Franklin” or “Francis.”
47. Fred: Usually a short form of “Frederick.”
48. Gabe: Often a short form of “Gabriel.”
49. Gage: Old French origin, means “measure.”
50. Gene: Often a short form of “Eugene.”
51. George: Greek origin, means “farmer.”
52. Glen: Scottish origin, means “valley.”
53. Glenn: Variant of “Glen,” also means “valley.”
54. Grant: French origin, means “great” or “large.”
55. Gray: Color-inspired, refers to the color gray.
56. Greg: Often a short form of “Gregory.”
57. Grey: Variant of “Gray,” also color-inspired.
58. Guy: Old French origin, means “guide.”
59. Hank: Often a short form of “Henry.”
60. Hans: German form of “John,” means “God is gracious.”
61. Heath: Old English origin, means “wasteland.”
62. Holt: Old English origin, means “forest.”
63. Hugh: German origin, means “mind, intellect.”
64. Jace: Modern, often a short form of “Jason.”
65. Jack: Often a short form of “John.”
66. Jake: Usually a short form of “Jacob.”
67. James: Hebrew origin, means “supplanter.”
68. Jay: Nature-inspired, named after the bird.
69. Jean: French form of “John.”
70. Jeff: Often a short form of “Jeffrey.”
71. Jim: Usually a short form of “James.”
72. Joe: Often a short form of “Joseph.”
73. Joel: Hebrew origin, means “Yahweh is God.”
74. John: Hebrew origin, means “God is gracious.”
75. Josh: Usually a short form of “Joshua.”
76. Jude: Latin origin, means “praised.”
77. Kai: Hawaiian origin, means “sea.”
78. Kane: Irish origin, means “battle.”
79. Kemp: Old English origin, means “athlete, warrior.”
80. Kent: Old English origin, from a place name.
81. Kier: Possibly a variant of “Kieran,” means “dark-haired.”
82. Kip: Old English origin, means “pointed hill.”
83. Kirk: Scottish origin, means “church.”
84. Knox: Old English origin, means “round hill.”
85. Kurt: German origin, means “courteous.”
86. Kyle: Scottish origin, means “narrow.”
87. Lance: German origin, means “land.”
88. Lane: Old English origin, means “path.”
89. Lee: Old English origin, means “meadow.”
90. Leif: Scandinavian origin, means “heir” or “descendant.”
91. Leigh: Variant of “Lee,” also means “meadow.”
92. Lloyd: Welsh origin, means “gray.”
93. Luke: Greek origin, means “from Lucania.”
94. Lyle: Old French origin, from the island of Lille.
95. Mac: Often a short form of names starting with “Mac-” or “Mc-.”
96. Mack: Variant of “Mac,” also often a short form of names starting with “Mac-” or “Mc-.”
97. Mark: Latin origin, means “warlike.”
98. Matt: Often a short form of “Matthew.”
99. Max: Usually a short form of “Maxwell” or “Maximilian.”
100. Mike: Often a short form of “Michael
101. Miles: Latin origin, means “soldier.”
102. Mitch: Often a short form of “Mitchell.”
103. Moe: Usually a short form of “Morris” or “Moses.”
104. Nash: Old English origin, means “at the ash tree.”
105. Nate: Often a short form of “Nathan” or “Nathaniel.”
106. Neal: Variant of “Neil,” means “cloud” or “champion.”
107. Neil: Irish origin, means “cloud” or “champion.”
108. Nick: Often a short form of “Nicholas.”
109. Noel: French origin, means “Christmas.”
110. Owen: Welsh origin, means “young warrior” or “well-born.”
111. Paul: Latin origin, means “small” or “humble.”
112. Penn: Old English origin, means “enclosure” or “hill.”
113. Pete: Usually a short form of “Peter.”
114. Phil: Often a short form of “Philip.”
115. Pierce: English origin, means “rock.”
116. Quinn: Irish origin, means “descendant of Conn.”
117. Ralph: Old English origin, means “wolf counsel.”
118. Ray: Often a short form of “Raymond.”
119. Reed: English origin, means “red” or “red-haired.”
120. Reese: Welsh origin, means “enthusiasm.”
121. Reid: Variant of “Reed,” also means “red.”
122. Rex: Latin origin, means “king.”
123. Rhett: Dutch origin, means “advice.”
124. Rhys: Welsh origin, means “enthusiasm.”
125. Rick: Often a short form of “Richard.”
126. Rob: Usually a short form of “Robert.”
127. Rod: Often a short form of “Roderick.”
128. Roger: Germanic origin, means “famous spear.”
129. Ron: Often a short form of “Ronald.”
130. Ross: Scottish origin, means “peninsula.”
131. Roy: French origin, means “king.”
132. Russ: Often a short form of “Russell.”
133. Rye: Nature-inspired, named after the grain or the plant.
134. Ry: Modern, often a short form of names like “Ryan.”
135. Sam: Often a short form of “Samuel.”
136. Saul: Hebrew origin, means “asked for, prayed for.”
137. Scott: Scottish origin, means “from Scotland.”
138. Sean: Irish form of “John,” means “God is gracious.”
139. Seth: Hebrew origin, means “appointed, placed.”
140. Shane: Irish form of “John,” means “God is gracious.”
141. Shaun: Irish form of “John,” means “God is gracious.”
142. Shawn: Variant of “Sean,” also means “God is gracious.”
143. Sid: Often a short form of “Sidney.”
144. Sky: Nature-inspired, refers to the sky.
145. Spike: Modern, often a nickname.
146. Stan: Usually a short form of “Stanley.”
147. Steve: Often a short form of “Steven” or “Stephen.”
148. Stone: Nature-inspired, refers to rock.
149. Tad: Often a short form of “Thaddeus.”
150. Tate: Old English origin, means “cheerful.”
151. Teague: Irish origin, means “poet” or “philosopher.”
152. Ted: Usually a short form of “Theodore.”
153. Tim: Often a short form of “Timothy.”
154. Todd: Old English origin, means “fox.”
155. Tom: Usually a short form of “Thomas.”
156. Trace: English origin, means “from Thracia.”
157. Trent: Latin origin, means “gushing waters.”
158. Trey: Latin origin, means “three.”
159. Troy: Greek origin, named after the ancient city of Troy.
160. Ty: Often a short form of “Tyler” or “Tyson.”
161. Van: Old Norse origin, means “from.”
162. Vance: Old English origin, means “fen.”
163. Vaughn: Welsh origin, means “small.”
164. Vic: Usually a short form of “Victor.”
165. Vince: Often a short form of “Vincent.”
166. Wade: Old English origin, means “to go.”
167. Walt: Usually a short form of “Walter.”
168. Wayne: Old English origin, means “wagon maker.”
169. Wes: Often a short form of “Wesley.”
170. West: Direction-inspired, refers to the western direction.
171. Will: Often a short form of “William.”
172. Wynn: Old English origin, means “friend.”
173. Zack: Usually a short form of “Zachary.”
174. Zane: Hebrew origin, means “God’s gracious gift.”

ALSO SEE: 100 two-syllable boy baby names | 100 one-syllable girl baby names

Old-school baby name advice

Back in 1937, here’s what the magazine Literary Digest had to say about choosing one-syllable names for baby boys.

If the surname (last name) has one syllable, avoid a one-syllable first name. Example: Montgomery Smith rather than John Smith.

With a two-syllable last name, use either a one-syllable name or three-syllable first name. John Hinton or Christopher Hinton, rather than Arthur Hinton.

When the last name has three syllables, either use a one- or two-syllable name. George Doughtery, but not Alexander Dougherty. Avoid overlapping consonants, such as with James Stephens.