Adjacent Words

Symbol definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SYM'BOL, n. [L. symbolum; Gr. with, and to throw; to compare.]
1. The sign or representation of any moral thing by the images or properties of natural things. Thus the lion is the symbol of courage; the lamb is the symbol of meekness or patience. Symbols are of various kinds, as types, enigmas, parables, fables, allegories, emblems, hieroglyphics, etc.
2. An emblem or representation of something else. Thus in the eucharist, the bread and wine are called symbols of the body and blood of Christ.
3. A letter or character which is significant. The Chinese letters are most of them symbols. The symbols in algebra are arbitrary.
4. In medals, a certain mark or figure representing a being or thing, as a trident is the symbol of Neptune, the peacock of June, etc.
5. Among christians, an abstract or compendium; the creed, or a summary of the articles of religion.
6. Lot; sentence of adjudication. [Not in use.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an arbitrary sign (written or printed) that has acquired a conventional significance
2: something visible that by association or convention represents something else that is invisible; "the eagle is a symbol of the United States" [syn: symbol, symbolization, symbolisation, symbolic representation]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: in sense 1, from Late Latin symbolum, from Late Greek symbolon, from Greek, token, sign; in other senses from Latin symbolum token, sign, symbol, from Greek symbolon, literally, token of identity verified by comparing its other half, from symballein to throw together, compare, from syn- + ballein to throw — more at devil Date: 15th century 1. an authoritative summary of faith or doctrine ; creed 2. something that stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention, or accidental resemblance; especially a visible sign of something invisible <the lion is a symbol of courage> 3. an arbitrary or conventional sign used in writing or printing relating to a particular field to represent operations, quantities, elements, relations, or qualities 4. an object or act representing something in the unconscious mind that has been repressed <phallic symbols> 5. an act, sound, or object having cultural significance and the capacity to excite or objectify a response II. verb (-boled or -bolled; -boling or -bolling) Date: 1832 symbolize

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a thing conventionally regarded as typifying, representing, or recalling something, esp. an idea or quality (white is a symbol of purity). 2 a mark or character taken as the conventional sign of some object, idea, function, or process, e.g. the letters standing for the chemical elements or the characters in musical notation. --v.tr. (symbolled, symbolling; US symboled, symboling) symbolize. Derivatives: symbology n. Etymology: ME f. L symbolum f. Gk sumbolon mark, token (as SYN-, ballo throw)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Symbol Sym"bol, n. [L. symbolus, symbolum, Gr. sy`mbolon a sign by which one knows or infers a thing, from ? to throw or put together, to compare; sy`n with + ? to throw: cf. F. symbole. Cf. Emblem, Parable.] 1. A visible sign or representation of an idea; anything which suggests an idea or quality, or another thing, as by resemblance or by convention; an emblem; a representation; a type; a figure; as, the lion is the symbol of courage; the lamb is the symbol of meekness or patience. A symbol is a sign included in the idea which it represents, e. g., an actual part chosen to represent the whole, or a lower form or species used as the representative of a higher in the same kind. --Coleridge. 2. (Math.) Any character used to represent a quantity, an operation, a relation, or an abbreviation. Note: In crystallography, the symbol of a plane is the numerical expression which defines its position relatively to the assumed axes. 3. (Theol.) An abstract or compendium of faith or doctrine; a creed, or a summary of the articles of religion. 4. [Gr. ? contributions.] That which is thrown into a common fund; hence, an appointed or accustomed duty. [Obs.] They do their work in the days of peace . . . and come to pay their symbol in a war or in a plague. --Jer. Taylor. 5. Share; allotment. [Obs.] The persons who are to be judged . . . shall all appear to receive their symbol. --Jer. Taylor. 6. (Chem.) An abbreviation standing for the name of an element and consisting of the initial letter of the Latin or New Latin name, or sometimes of the initial letter with a following one; as, C for carbon, Na for sodium (Natrium), Fe for iron (Ferrum), Sn for tin (Stannum), Sb for antimony (Stibium), etc. See the list of names and symbols under Element. Note: In pure and organic chemistry there are symbols not only for the elements, but also for their grouping in formulas, radicals, or residues, as evidenced by their composition, reactions, synthesis, etc. See the diagram of Benzene nucleus, under Benzene. Syn: Emblem; figure; type. See Emblem.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Symbol Sym"bol, v. t. To symbolize. [R.] --Tennyson.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(symbols) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. Something that is a symbol of a society or an aspect of life seems to represent it because it is very typical of it. To them, the monarchy is the special symbol of nationhood... She was put under house arrest two years ago but remained a powerful symbol in last year's election. N-COUNT: with supp 2. A symbol of something such as an idea is a shape or design that is used to represent it. I frequently use sunflowers as symbols of strength. N-COUNT: with supp 3. A symbol for an item in a calculation or scientific formula is a number, letter, or shape that represents that item. What's the chemical symbol for mercury? N-COUNT 4. see also sex symbol, status symbol

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Emblem, type, sign, token, figure, representative.

Moby Thesaurus

abbreviation, accent, accent mark, acronym, agent, allegory, alphabet, alphabetic character, alternate, alternative, analogy, armory, arms, art, attribute, backup, badge, badge of office, badges, banner, bar, baton, bearing, binary digit, bit, blazonry, blueprint, brand, brassard, button, cancel, cap and gown, case, case in point, chain, chain of office, change, changeling, character, charactering, characterization, charactery, chart, choreography, cipher, class ring, coat of arms, cockade, code, collar, colophon, comparison, conventional representation, conventional symbol, copy, counterfeit, crest, cross, cryptogram, custos, dance notation, decoration, delineation, demonstration, depiction, depictment, deputy, design, device, diagram, digit, direct, dot, double, drama, drawing, dress, dummy, eagle, emblem, emblems, ensigns, equal, equivalent, ersatz, escutcheon, example, exchange, exemplar, exemplification, explanation, exponent, expression mark, fake, fasces, father symbol, fermata, fertility symbol, figuration, figure, figurehead, fill-in, flag, fleur-de-lis, ghost, ghostwriter, glosseme, graph, grapheme, hammer and sickle, heraldry, hieroglyphic, hold, icon, iconography, iconology, ideogram, illustration, image, imagery, imaging, imitation, indication, initialism, insignia, instance, key signature, lapel pin, lead, letter, lexeme, lexical form, lexigraphic character, ligature, limning, livery, locum tenens, logo, logogram, logograph, logotype, love knot, mace, makeshift, mantle, map, mark, markings, measure, medal, metaphor, metonymy, metronomic mark, monogram, morpheme, mortarboard, mother symbol, motif, musical notation, next best thing, notation, note, number, numeral, numero, object lesson, old school tie, password, pattern, pause, pennant, personnel, phallic symbol, phonetic character, phonetic symbol, phony, phrase, pictogram, pictographic character, picturization, pin, pinch hitter, plan, portraiture, portrayal, prefigurement, presa, presentment, printing, projection, proxy, realization, regalia, relevant instance, relief, rendering, rendition, replacement, representation, representative, reserves, ring, ringer, rose, schema, school ring, score, script, second string, secondary, segno, semasiological unit, sememe, shamrock, shibboleth, sigillography, sign, signature, signifiant, significant, skull and crossbones, slur, spares, sphragistics, staff, stamp, stand-in, standard, sub, substituent, substitute, substitution, succedaneum, superseder, supplanter, surrogate, swastika, swell, syllabary, syllabic, symbolic system, symbolism, symbolization, symbology, synecdoche, tablature, tartan, tempo mark, term, third string, thistle, tie, time signature, token, totem, totem pole, type, typical example, understudy, uniform, universal symbol, utility player, verge, vicar, vice-president, vice-regent, vinculum, wand, watchword, word, writing, written character