icon

[ ahy-kon ]

noun

1. Digital Technology. a picture or symbol that appears on a screen and is used to represent a file, account, application, etc.:

   Tap the icon to download the app.

   Click the flag icon at the top of the web page to toggle the language to English.

2. Eastern Church. a representation of some sacred personage or event, such as Christ or a saint or the Resurrection, painted usually on a wood surface and venerated for its subject.
3. a person or thing that epitomizes for many people a value, an era, a community, etc:

   Blue jeans remain an American cultural icon, despite the outsourcing of their manufacture to other countries.

4. a person or thing that is revered or idolized:

   Elvis Presley is a cultural icon of the 20th century.

5. Semiotics. a sign or representation that stands for its object by virtue of a resemblance or analogy to it.
6. any picture, image, or other representation.

icon

/ ˈaɪkɒn /

noun

1. Alsoikon a representation of Christ, the Virgin Mary, or a saint, esp one painted in oil on a wooden panel, depicted in a traditional Byzantine style and venerated in the Eastern Church
2. an image, picture, representation, etc
3. a person or thing regarded as a symbol of a belief, nation, community, or cultural movement
4. a person regarded as a sex symbol or as a symbol of the latest fashion trends
5. a pictorial representation of a facility available on a computer system, that enables the facility to be activated by means of a screen cursor rather than by a textual instruction

icon

/ ī′kŏn′ /

1. In a graphical user interface, a picture on the screen that represents a specific file, directory, window, or program. Clicking on an icon will start the associated program or open the associated file, directory, or window.

icon

1. An image used in worship in the Eastern Orthodox Church and among other Christians (see also Christian ) of similar traditions. Icons depict Jesus , Mary , and the saints , usually in a severe, symbolic, nonrealistic way.

Word History and Origins

Origin of icon¹

First recorded in 1565–75; from Latin īcon, from Greek eikṓn “figure, image, likeness”

Word History and Origins

Origin of icon¹

C16: from Latin, from Greek eikōn image, from eikenai to be like

Synonym Study

See image.

Example Sentences

There are certain icons and phrases that have made their way in the public awareness that people really resonate with.

From Vox

With industry icons who’d previously eliminated tips, like Danny Meyer, reintroducing them in the pandemic to give hard-hit employees more cash, pay equity seems a moving goalpost — but one that arguably more people are aware of than before.

From Eater

After her release in 2010, she became an icon of human rights, mentioned in the same breath as Gandhi or Mandela.

From Time

DeepFuckingValue, the Reddit trading icon, was still up 2,800% yesterday.

From TechCrunch

Suu Kyi, former democracy icon, defends Myanmar against genocide allegations

From Washington Post

This penchant for medical internationalism goes back to the greatest icon of the revolution, Ernesto “Che” Guevara.

From The Daily Beast

Sxities icon Eugene McCarthy spent his final years warning about the negative impact of unfettered immigration.

From The Daily Beast

Padre Goyo, with his clerical collar and his bulletproof vest, is an icon for those fighting drugs and corruption.

From The Daily Beast

The family remain close to the democracy icon, who earlier this month sent a letter of condolences to Than Dar.

From The Daily Beast

Three days after that, the author of the original Rollins piece published a defense of his skewering of the sax icon.

From The Daily Beast

In front of the icon the Gentiles said their prayers, on their knees, crossing themselves all the time.

From Project Gutenberg

A so-called "fourth part," with the title of Icon Animorum, appeared in 1614.

From Project Gutenberg

Thus might a devout Russian have greeted a lost icon, and worshipped, silently, a re-found saint.

From Project Gutenberg

Then the wildest Nistinare seizes the icon, turns it to the crowd, and with naked feet climbs the pyre of glowing embers.

From Project Gutenberg

Synonym′icon, a dictionary of synonymous words; Synonym′ics, synonymy.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• apotheosis
• avatar
• embodiment
• epitome
• incarnation
• manifestation
• personification
• quintessence
• representation
• symbol