Other forms: christened; christening; christens
To christen a person is to name them, especially in a church baptism ceremony. Your parents may have christened you after a great-grandparent, giving you the same first name.
Even if you were christened "Tom Smith" at birth, your friends might give you a nickname, christening you "Pickles" and referring to you that way for the rest of your life. Objects can be christened too: "I hereby christen this car Scooby Doo the Subaru!" When it happens as part of a religious ceremony, being christened means being officially admitted to a Christian church — and the word's Old English root literally means "make Christian."