Trey

• Origin: English
• Meaning: “three.”
• Gender: Male
• Pron: TRAY

From the transferred use of an English nickname, Trey was traditionally used in the United States to designate the third person to bear the same name in a family, e.g., John William Smith III. The practice became particularly associated with the American South. The nickname derives from the English word trey, originally referring to a playing card, die, or domino marked with three spots. The word ultimately derives from the Anglo-French and Old French trei/treis, meaning “three.” Trey spun off as an independent given name by the early 1960s.

In the United States, Trey first entered the U.S. Top 1000 male names in 1962. Its popularity increased considerably during the 1980s and early 1990s, peaking at #189 in 1999. As of 2025, it ranks around #890 among male names in the United States.

In England and Wales, Trey has experienced considerably less usage. It first appeared in the Top 1000 male names at #938 in 1996 and reached its highest rank of #515 in 2000. Its appearances became increasingly sporadic thereafter, with its last Top 1000 appearance at #919 in 2018. It has not appeared in the rankings since 2019.

Sister Names: Ainsley, Avery, Billie, Bobbie, Brett, Carrington, Chelsea, Courtney, Emerson, Emery, Frankie, Gracelyn, Hayley, Jordan, Kelly, Kennedy, Kylie, Leigh/Lee, Lindsay, Madison, McKenzie, McKenna, Oakley, Paige, Palmer, Peyton, Quinn, Remington, Ripley, Skyler, Tatum

Brother Names: Ace, Billy, Bobby, Buck, Cade, Cole, Colt, Dale, Dean, Dwayne, Dwight, Earl, Floyd, Flynn, Ford, Gage, Garrett, Guy, Hank, Jace, Jamie, Judd, Kyle, Lee, Loren, Nash, Ned, Oak, Quinn, Reed, Rhett, Ridges, Seth, Travis, Trip(p), Ty(e), Vaughn, Van, Von, Vance, Wade, Ward, Wayne, Zane

Sources

• Evans, Cleveland. “Remembered as Popular Slang, Trey Continues as a Nickname, or Signifying the Third.” American Name Society, 2022.
• https://www.behindthename.com/name/trey
• https://www.etymonline.com/word/trey?utm_source=chatgpt.com