Symbol Sign Verb Noun Stands Sth Latin Greek

sym·bol

I

\\ˈsim-bəl\\ noun1. 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 ; -bol·ing or -bol·ling) :

symbol
  c.1434, "creed, summary, religious belief," from L.L. symbolum "creed, token, mark," from Gk. symbolon "token, watchword" (applied c.250 by Cyprian of Carthage to the Apostles' Creed, on the notion of the "mark" that distinguishes Christians from pagans), lit. "that which is thrown or cast together," from syn- "together" + bole "a throwing, a casting, the stroke of a missile, bolt, beam," from bol-, nom. stem of ballein "to throw" (see ballistics). The sense evolution in Gk. is from "throwing things together" to "contrasting" to "comparing" to "token used in comparisons to determine if something is genuine." Hence, "outward sign" of something. The meaning "something which stands for something else" first recorded 1590 (in "Faerie Queene"). Symbolic is attested from 1680.

☞ symbol
sym·bol / 5simbl / noun1. ~ (of sth) a person, an object, an event, etc. that represents a more general quality or situation
   象征:
   White has always been a symbol of purity in Western cultures.
   在西方文化中,白色一向象征纯洁。
   Mandela became a symbol of the anti-apartheid struggle.
   曼德拉成为反种族隔离斗争的象征。
⇨ note at

sign

2. ~ (for sth) a sign, number, letter, etc. that has a fixed meaning, especially in science, mathematics and music
   符号；代号；记号:
   What is the chemical symbol for copper?
   铜的化学符号是什么？
   A list of symbols used on the map is given in the index.
   这份地图所使用的符号全部列在索引中。
⇨ see also

sex symbol

,

status symbol

symbol noun

Search result show the entry is found in: , or , or , or , or , or

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sym·bol
I. \ˈsimbəl\ noun
(-s)
Etymology: in sense 1, from Late Latin symbolum baptismal creed, from Late Greek symbolon, literally, token, sign, from Greek; in other senses, from Latin symbolus, symbolum token, sign, from Greek symbolon token of identity (verified by comparing its other half), sign, symbol, from symballein to throw together, compare, contribute, from syn- + ballein to throw — more at
1. : an authoritative summary of faith or doctrine : a creedal formulary :
2. : something that stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention, or accidental but not intentional resemblance; especially : a visible sign of something (as a concept or an institution) that is invisible
 < the lion is the symbol of courage >
 < the cross was always one of the symbols of Christianity — E.S.Holden >
 < a flock of sheep is not the symbol of a free people — New Republic >
 < shop windows are full of festive symbols: cats and candles, witches and brooms, pumpkins and grotesque masks — Lucy Embury >
 < a heritage is at any moment a selection of symbols out of the past — Max Lerner >
3. : an arbitrary or conventional sign (as a character, a diagram, a letter, or an abbreviation) used in writing or printing relating to a particular field (as mathematics, physics, chemistry, music, or phonetics) to represent operations, quantities, spatial position, valence, direction, elements, relations, qualities, sounds, or other ideas or qualities :
 < the usual symbols for crossroads, stores, and churches on rural maps — American Guide Series: Minnesota >
4.
 a.
  (1) : a formal unit of expression (as a term, proposition, or formal argument) that represents an abstract thought capable of being dealt with as a unit
  (2) : a conventionally adopted character in logic
 b. : a conventional or nonnatural sign depending for its meaning on an interpretant — contrasted with icon and index
5. : an object or act that represents a repressed complex through unconscious association rather than through objective resemblance or conscious substitution
6. : an act, sound, or material object having cultural significance and the capacity to excite or objectify a response
 < there must be some symbols around which interaction can be organized — W.F.Whyte >
Synonyms:
 , , , can signify, in common, a visible thing that stands for or suggests something invisible or intangible. and are often used interchangeably but may be distinguished by the fact that can apply to anything that serves as an outward sign of something else, usually spiritual or immaterial
  < the key symbols are the lilac which stands for the new birth in the spring of the year, the drooping star which stands for death, and the bird whose song embraces birth and death indifferently, and so inspires the poet that he becomes the bird — J.C.Ransom >
  < the present law is spiteful, and … has become a symbol of dissension and bitterness — A.E.Stevenson †1965 >
  < “Dr. Livingstone, I presume”, a phrase whose casualness made it a symbol everywhere of British aplomb — American Guide Series: Arkansas >
  < language consists of symbols >
  usually applies to pictorial representation or to something standing as a pictorial or picturelike symbol and is often used of a pictorial device found on a shield or banner intended to serve as a chosen symbol of the character or history of the nation, royal line, or organization that has adopted it
  < the national emblem of the Future Farmers of America is significant and meaningful in every detail … made up of five symbols: the owl, the plow, and the rising sun, within the cross section of an ear of corn which is surmounted by the American eagle — Future Farmers of America >
  < his emblem was a butterfly with a sting in its tail — a sting he attempted to keep in constant use — Time >
  < the American eagle, emblem of the U.S. >
  < the emblem of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the sickle around an arm and hammer >
  < the cold teapot, the emptied cups, emblems of hospitality — Joseph Conrad >
  , a term in painting and sculpture, applies to an object usually associated with a representation of a character or personified abstraction and serving to identify it
  < the attribute of Fortune, a turning wheel >
  < the scales and blindfold, the attribute of Justice >
  , in this connection occurring chiefly in theological use, applies to a person or thing prefiguring or foreshadowing something or someone to come and serving as his or its symbol until the reality appears, often implying a divine dispensation whereby a person, event, or experience prefigures a spiritual or immaterial reality
  < allegory was also called on to justify, as against educated pagans, certain acts of that heroic but peccant type of Christ, David, the son of Jesse — H.O.Taylor >
Synonym: see in addition .
II. verb
(symboled or symbolled ; symboled or symbolled ; symboling or symbolling \-b(ə)liŋ\ ; symbols)
transitive verb
: to visualize by means of a symbol :
intransitive verb
: to employ symbols
 < man has the power to symbol >
III. noun
(-s)
Etymology: Latin symbola, from Greek symbolē, from symballein to throw together, contribute

: something that is thrown into a common fund :