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BabyNames
Boy name#83 of boy names

Terry

Pronounced T EH1 R IY0 (ARPABET)

  • 2 syllables
  • Peaked 1957
  • 145 years in use
  • 4 spellings
Compare

How popular is Terry?

Terry is a boys' name, and has been in the record since the data starts in 1880. It has been given to 426,226 children — the 83rd most common boys' name on record.

It has been slipping, down 48% on the previous decade. Its best single year was 1957, when 15,685 children were given it.

Four other spellings are counted in that total — Terri, Tarry, Terrie and one more — because they are pronounced identically.

05,00010,00015,00020,00018901920195019802010
195715,685

Spelling variants

These spellings sound identical to Terry and are counted together with it, which is why the totals here are higher than a single-spelling count.

  • Terri
  • Tarry
  • Terrie
  • Teri

Characteristics

  • 2 syllables
Phonetic detail
Pronunciations:
T EH1 R IY0
Stress pattern:
10
Syllables:
2

Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.

Names like Terry

Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.

Sibling names for Terry

Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.

Frequently asked questions

How popular is the name Terry?
Terry ranks 83rd among boys' names in US records, with 426,226 births since 1880. Over the past decade it accounts for 2,776.
Is Terry a unisex name?
No. Terry is recorded almost entirely as a boys' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.
When was Terry most popular?
1957, when 15,685 children were given the name. It has been in use for 145 years and is still recorded as of 2024.
How else is Terry spelled?
Terri, Tarry, Terrie, Teri. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.