10 Iconic Black Widow Nicknames You Need to Know About

Black Widow is one of the most iconic female superheroes ever, not just in Marvel but in comics in general. The character’s popularity was amplified after Scarlett Johansson’s MCU portrayal, but what makes Black Widow so epic is the fact that she’s only human, battling with cosmic threats, wizards, titans, and gods – and doing just fine.

Her skill set is what defines her, and although Black Widow may seem cold and distant at first, you learn just how soft and kid she is as you get to know her. That, of course, resulted in some epic nicknames, as it does with almost every other character. So, without further ado, here are the ten best, most iconic Black Widow nicknames you absolutely need to know about.

The list is not ranked but rather alphabetically ordered.

Black Widow

No, this entry is not a mistake. In fact, it is by far the most iconic nickname the Black Widow has ever had – so much so that it essentially became her superhero alias. However, the origins of the nickname Black Widow stem from Natasha Romanoff’s childhood days.

Every apprentice of the Red Room is called a Widow. Natasha, however, got the nickname Black Widow as the most prominent student they had ever seen. At first, you get the reference to the spider that’s highly seductive but usually kills the male after mating. But that wasn’t the motivation behind the nickname.

Instead, in The Web of the Black Widow #1, we learn that Natasha got the nickname from her Red Room headmistress. She was still a kid; tiny but deadly, like the deadliest of spiders, easily escaping notice until it was far too late. That’s Natasha, alright!

Boss Lady

There are several cool or funny nicknames given to the Black Widow in Giant-Size Hulk #1, like the Beauteous One. While it does describe her appearance, it doesn’t really get to the core of her character.

However, the nickname Boss Lady certainly does. Not only is the Black Widow an epic combatant, but she is also a great leader and a lady you don’t want to mess with. The true definition of what a Boss Lady should be

Eye Candy

This one comes from the MCU but not from any of the movies. Instead, the nickname Eye Candy for Natasha came in the show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., specifically, the episode called Nothing Personal. Scarlett’s Black Widow doesn’t appear in the show but is mentioned several times, including this episode, where she’s referred to as Eye Candy.

Saying that Natasha Romanoff is simply Eye Candy among the Avengers is highly disrespectful and is exactly what she stands against. Women aren’t just what they look like, and she is the perfect example of it, which is why I didn’t particularly like this nickname for her.

Little Spider

As we now know in the MCU as well but have known in the comics for quite some time – Natasha Romanoff isn’t the only Black Widow. Instead, after Natasha finished her career, her young sister, Yelena Belova, took over as the Black Widow.

She was even smaller than Natasha but sassier and a bit more reckless. Still, she proved to be just as dangerous, and the two were briefly called the Toughest Girls in the World in the Black Widow movie from 2021.

Yelena donned the nickname Little Spider, referring to her being Natasha’s younger sister. Right now, she’s known as the White Widow in the comics, but she donned the Black Widow mantle for quite some time – and is still donning it in the MCU.

Nat

This is probably the most frequent nickname we hear used for Natasha Romanoff in the MCU. Her close friends – the Avengers – almost always call her either Natasha or Nat – rarely do they address her as the Black Widow.

The guys who call her Nat the most are those who are the closest to her – Clint Barton, Bruce Banner, and Steve Rogers. Nat is, obviously, short for Natasha and is my favorite nickname for her on this list because it’s simple but personal.

Natalie Rushman

As a special secret spy, Black Widow had countless aliases in her career, from Nadine Roman and Nancy Rushman to Natalie Grey. However, the one that stood out the most was the one the Black Widow donned when we first met her in the MCU – namely, in Iron Man 2.

Natalie Rushman was Tony Stark’s assistant, who was actually Natasha Romanoff working undercover, placed there by Nick Fury. She and Tony had several flirtatious moments, but it seemed that Stark could sense something wrong from the start.

It’s more of an alias than it is a nickname, but it was iconic for Black Widow because that’s the name we first associated with the character in the MCU.

Tasha

If you combine the two most common nicknames used for the Black Widow, you’ll actually get her full name. Nat was the first abbreviation, while Tasha was the second. It didn’t stick as well as Nat, as it doesn’t have that good of a ring to it, but it was used quite frequently in the comics – for instance, in Mighty Avengers #11.

Tasha just sounds more – for the lack of a better word – foreign, so I can see why the nickname Nat stuck, while Tasha tends to be forgotten. Still, it appears in the comics more often than most of the nicknames on this list, so I just had to include it.

Triple Imposter

As you probably know, Tony Stark is the god of nicknames – especially in the MCU. Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man virtually had a cool/mocking nickname or two for just about everybody, and Black Widow was no exception.

After learning about her deception – that his assistant, Natalie Rushman, was actually the Black Widow undercover – he gave her a uniquely hilarious nickname – Triple Imposter. It’s not really flattering, but it beats Point Break for Thor, or Squidward for Ebony Maw, am I right?

Tsarina

I actually love this nickname for Black Widow, although it’s actually in Russian. Tsarina means ‘the Empress,’ and I somehow feel like it’s the perfect nickname for Romanoff. We’ve heard Black Widow being called Tsarina in Avengers Vol. 3 #2 or Czarina in Avengers: Roll Call #1 – which is basically the same, only spelled differently.

The Black Widow truly is an empress, considering how she uses her unique skills to lead by example, always doing her best and never backing down, despite being only human, fighting among gods. Can you think of a better nickname for her?

War Widow

Last but not least, the nickname War Widow came fairly recently for the first time in late 2019 – specifically, Avengers Vol. 8 #28. There are so many weird things going on here – Thor is a Brood now, Jen Walters is known only as the Hulk – and Natasha Romanoff became War Widow.

The War Widow is sort of an amalgam between the Black Widow and War Machine. Yup, Nat is wearing one of Rhoadie’s iron suits. Personally, I like the War Widow notion, although it kind of takes away from the core of what her character is – using nothing but her wits and skills to achieve her goals instead of relying on technology and heavy machinery. It is what it is, I guess.