Donald Trump has branded the former FBI director James Comey a “slimeball” during another Twitter tirade. The tweets were a reaction to unfavourable excerpts released in advance of Comey’s book, A Higher Loyalty, in which Comey likens the president to a mob boss and dismisses “the forest fire that is the Trump presidency”. After Trump’s tweets, Merriam-Webster dictionary reported a 60,000% spike in searches for the definition of “slimeball”, which it defines as “a morally repulsive or odious person”.

Just like the mob, Trump likes to dole out nicknames, especially to his opponents. It’s a trick he may have learned from professional wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment, which inducted him into its Hall of Fame in 2013. Its wrestlers go by names such as “Stone Cold Steve Austin” or “The Undertaker” – distinguishing for its predominantly young audience the heroes from the villains.

So who else has Trump rebranded?

‘Crooked Hillary’

Hillary Clinton. Photograph: Angela Pham/BFA/Rex/Shutterstock

Throughout the 2016 election campaign Trump would often refer to Hillary Clinton as “Crooked Hillary”, usually in reference to her use of a private email server during her time as secretary of state in the Obama White House.

‘Little Marco’

Marco Rubio. Photograph: Jacquelyn Martin/AP

Marco Rubio earned his moniker after poking fun at Trump’s “small hands” during the 2016 Republican presidential campaign.



‘Crazy Bernie’

Bernie Sanders. Photograph: No Credit

Bernie Sanders joined the list of nicknames when Trump rounded on the senator during the Democrats’ presidential race. Sanders was doing well against Clinton at the time, when Trump tweeted : “I don’t want to hit Crazy Bernie Sanders too hard yet because I love watching what he is doing to Crooked Hillary. His time will come!”



‘Sloppy Steve’

Steve Bannon. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

After Michael Wolff’s book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House was published, Trump slammed the former White House strategist Steve Bannon in another early-morning rant on Twitter – and “Sloppy Steve” was born.

‘Rocket man’

Kim Jong-un. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Trump nicknamed North Korea leader Kim Jong-un a “maniac” and a “whack job” before settling on “rocket man” at the 2017 United Nations General Assembly.

Al ‘Frankenstien’

Al Franken. Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPA

After Senator Al Franken was accused of sexually harassing Los Angeles radio host Leeann Tweeden in 2006, Trump – who doesn’t seem terribly concerned about appearing hypocritical – lambasted the senator and compared him to Frankenstein, only he spelled it wrong.