mascot

American

[mas-kot, -kuht] / ˈmæs kɒt, -kət /

noun

an animal, person, or thing adopted by a group as its representative symbol and supposed to bring good luck.

The U.S. Navy mascot is a goat.

mascot British

/ ˈmæskət /

noun

a person, animal, or thing considered to bring good luck

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of mascot

1880–85; < French mascotte < Provençal mascoto talisman, charm, derivative of masco sorceress. See mask

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

This past March, we held a celebration of life for Peanut, Meredith’s ancient mutt who’d been our Sunday mascot.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2026

On a screen, Waltz showed me a super-magified image of a blue jay—the Johns Hopkins mascot.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026

At another point, a giant monitor behind the action featured Concho, the singer’s crested toad mascot.

From Salon • Feb. 9, 2026

Draco Malfoy, one of the schoolboy villains in the Harry Potter series, has become an unlikely New Year mascot.

From Barron's • Feb. 5, 2026

All of them emblazoned with the school colors and mascot.

From "We Are Okay" by Nina LaCour

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023