hypocorism (noun)

1. In the science fiction novel, the protagonist affectionately called his robot companion by a hypocorism like 'Buddybot'.

2. In the fashion industry, designers often create collections with quirky and playful names as a form of hypocorism for the garments, like 'Lovely Lace Dress' or 'Sweetheart Sweater'.

3. During the American Civil War, soldiers commonly used hypocorisms to refer to their fellow comrades, such as 'Johnny Reb' for Confederate soldiers and 'Billy Yank' for Union soldiers.

4. In the art world, painters sometimes give their favorite subjects hypocoristic names, like 'Sleeping Beauty' for a serene landscape painting or 'Little Dancer' for a delicate sculpture of a ballerina.