English Reference

Word

nominee

Phoneticsnom·i·nee

US/ˌnɑməˈni/

UK/nˈɒmɪnˌiː/

Definitions

01candidate for award or office

B2

n. someone who is officially suggested for a prize, a job, or a political role.

n. a person formally proposed as a candidate for an election, an appointment, or an honour such as an Academy Award.

“The Oscar nominee thanked her family during her short speech on stage.”

“The presidential nominee spent the final weeks of the campaign touring the swing states to secure the support of undecided voters.”

02legal/financial representative

C1 · Law

n. a person or company that holds property or shares for someone else to keep the real owner's name private.

n. a person or entity in whose name a security or property is registered, while the beneficial ownership remains with another party.

“He put the shares in the name of a nominee to keep his investment private.”

“The assets were held by a nominee company to facilitate the transfer of titles without disclosing the identity of the primary investors.”

Technical · Formal

Usage

Often used in the context of 'nominee accounts' in banking or 'nominee shareholders' in corporate law.

Real-World Examples

“Republican nominee Donalds encouraged his party to unite ahead of the general election.”
The Guardian · 19 Aug 2026
“Democrats in Michigan, one of the states given a boost in the calendar shakeup, narrowly voted earlier this month to select progressive Abdul El-Sayed as their Senate nominee.”
Al Jazeera · 15 Aug 2026

Etymology

From nomin(ate) + -ee.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry

Level
C1 · Advanced
Frequency
Frequent
Updated

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