Page 2 | Thoughts on the boys' name Woody if we have a son?

MaxiMoomins · 2026-04-11T22:15:02+00:00

Really struggling with boys names. My partner loves Woody and I’m trying to get on board. I think it’s cute but I don’t LOVE it yet.. How do people feel about it?? we don’t know the gender yet! 😁

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lemoncurdcupcake · 14/04/2026 10:34

We have an Elwood in the family who goes by Woody. He's also not been teased about it to the best of my knowledge.

Don't necessarily think you need a long name if you like Woody as a stand-alone though.

I like it.

ladygindiva · 13/04/2026 20:45

AmberSpy · 11/04/2026 23:24

I'm sure I've heard woody used as slang for an erection... It's an absolutely dreadful name, sorry.

Yes I came to say this. Couldn't get past it.

Chamallo · 13/04/2026 20:27

I don’t like it. It’s just a bit uninspiring. Do you like the connection to nature? Because in that case I would go for something more “alive”… Ash, Forest, Oak, Sky, River.
But Wood makes me think of dead trees. It’s just so static sounding.

timoteigirl · 13/04/2026 20:06

Isn't Woody also a nick-name for Edward? I also met a bloke named Wardell who was called Woody. So there are options of real names.

ArtTheClownIsNotAMime · 13/04/2026 19:59

GoldenGail · 13/04/2026 19:45

MY son had a friend named Woody. Okay with very Toy Story connotations until he reached secondary school then his life became hell to the extent he refused to go. BIg willies drawn all over his stuff and at one point on his forehead in permanent marker. At 17 he changed his name to Jack .

Please reconsider

Well my brother's neighbour's hairdresser's dog's aunt has a son called Woody and nobody he's ever met has made the very common connection to the slang word for an erection. Ever. And of course I would know if that HAD happened. So Woody is a great name.

GoldenGail · 13/04/2026 19:45

MY son had a friend named Woody. Okay with very Toy Story connotations until he reached secondary school then his life became hell to the extent he refused to go. BIg willies drawn all over his stuff and at one point on his forehead in permanent marker. At 17 he changed his name to Jack .

Please reconsider

GoldenGail · 13/04/2026 19:20

TheBroonOneAndTheWhiteOne · 11/04/2026 23:25

Babies have a sex, not a gender.
I quite like the name Woody.

Well many of us see sex and gender as the same thing so it looks like the poster does too.

Edenmum2 · 13/04/2026 13:48

Oh and it’s not unusual really at all, there at 2 at my daughters nursery.

also - Toy Story - so what? It’s just the name of a character. 99% of names are also the names of characters in films. It’s not a negative association.

Edenmum2 · 13/04/2026 13:45

Love it

Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain · 13/04/2026 13:44

Toy Story

Calliopespa · 13/04/2026 13:43

It always makes me think of that cartoon woodpecker, Woody Woodpecker, but I also remember plenty of sniggering round Woody in Toy Story which I didn't understand at first but was told it referred to male arousal, so doesn't strike me as the ideal name for your son.

I just think there are lots of other names ...

MissMoneyFairy · 13/04/2026 12:21

Woody the Woodpecker

user1492757084 · 13/04/2026 11:40

I know a man about thirty five called Woody.
His name is a nick name for Edward.

AntiqueBabyLoanSmurf · 13/04/2026 11:39

mathanxiety · 13/04/2026 03:14

Jonty, Ptolemy, and Lettice are a long way from 'fine'.

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Indeed. Just because Lettice was (presumably) an accepted name in times past, anybody giving it to their DD is knowingly deciding to make things difficult for her throughout life, with everybody thinking they're the first person to think of asking if she has a brother called Tomato. I'll bet the vast majority would drop the 'c' in everyday life and just be known as Lettie.

Similar with Ptolemy: yes, maybe people should be educated enough to have heard the name and to know how to pronounce it, but in the real world, that isn't going to happen.

I know it's a standard MN trope, but I do think that anybody wanting to give their baby a 'wacky' or deliberately awkward/difficult name should be forced to introduce themselves to everybody new whom they meet as that name for 6 months beforehand.

CurlewKate · 13/04/2026 08:29

The issue really is-if you can not give your child a name that MIGHT make his life more difficult, then why would you? Woody might well sail through life with no issues. But the potential is there. So why do it?

Barrenfieldoffucks · 13/04/2026 06:31

AllFours · 12/04/2026 00:27

Cute nickname, but definitely a common-place euphemism for an erection!

Agreed.

I'd choose a name that can have it as a nickname.

JollyJolene · 13/04/2026 06:21

AntiqueBabyLoanSmurf · 13/04/2026 02:36

How well do you know him - and in what way? If he's, say, the DS of one of your friends, do you think he would actually freely tell his mum's mate (or indeed any adult other than a parent) that the kids at school call him Boner or Hardon, based on the fact that his actual name is another well-known slang word meaning the same thing - or ask him every morning when they see him if he has an erection?!

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Very well. Yes he would tell his mum and no, nothing like this has ever been said to him.

mathanxiety · 13/04/2026 03:14

CharlieCooksBook · 12/04/2026 00:30

Honestly I don't think many British kids (assuming you're in the UK) are going to be referring to Woody as an erection, especially in like 12 years time (when he and his peers will be prime piss taking age). I'm knocking on the door of 40 and never heard any of my peers use it in reference to thay, while I knew the term had that connotation it isn't the first thing that came to mind. Toy story, yes. Also the neighbours cat but that might be a bit niche.

Names are ever changing and in a multicultural society the MN viewpoint is that of a shallow, xenophobic cesspit. Basically anything that deviates from the norm of white and boring here is seen as a lifetime sentence.

If names ike Jonty, Ptolemy or Lettice are fine, why not Woody?

Jonty, Ptolemy, and Lettice are a long way from 'fine'.

AntiqueBabyLoanSmurf · 13/04/2026 02:36

JollyJolene · 12/04/2026 23:00

I know a teenage Woody. It’s a great name and it suits him. He’s never been called anything to do with an erection AFAIK, nor do people tell him Andy’s coming. So unoriginal.
I also know a Woody in his 50s. He has always liked his name.
Go for it, OP.

How well do you know him - and in what way? If he's, say, the DS of one of your friends, do you think he would actually freely tell his mum's mate (or indeed any adult other than a parent) that the kids at school call him Boner or Hardon, based on the fact that his actual name is another well-known slang word meaning the same thing - or ask him every morning when they see him if he has an erection?!

AntiqueBabyLoanSmurf · 13/04/2026 02:31

Tryagain26 · 12/04/2026 22:49

It's cute as a nickname for a baby or child but I think you should give him a proper name too.
Edward would give him a lot of options

Maybe I'm just an old dinosaur, but I really don't get the idea of giving nicknames/informal versions of names as birth certificate names. Why on earth wouldn't you want to give your child more options, depending on various life circumstances, as they grow up?

JollyJolene · 12/04/2026 23:00

I know a teenage Woody. It’s a great name and it suits him. He’s never been called anything to do with an erection AFAIK, nor do people tell him Andy’s coming. So unoriginal.
I also know a Woody in his 50s. He has always liked his name.
Go for it, OP.

Tryagain26 · 12/04/2026 22:49

It's cute as a nickname for a baby or child but I think you should give him a proper name too.
Edward would give him a lot of options

RollOnSunshine · 12/04/2026 22:46

When they learn that it's another name for an erection the bullying or even playful pisstaking (pun sort of intended) will be relentless.

TheMustardSeed · 12/04/2026 22:34

Lovely.

Giraffehaver · 12/04/2026 22:32

I know a cantankerous old sod called Woody do its a no from me