symbol

Etymology

Symbols of various religions.

From French symbole, from Latin symbolus, symbolum (“a sign, mark, token, symbol, in Late Latin also a creed”), from Ancient Greek σύμβολον (súmbolon, “a sign by which one infers something; a mark, token, badge, ticket, tally, check, a signal, watchword, outward sign”), from συμβάλλω (sumbállō, “I throw together, dash together, compare, correspond, tally, come to a conclusion”), from σύν (sún, “with, together”) + βάλλω (bállō, “I throw, put”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɪmbəl/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪmbəl
• Hyphenation: sym‧bol
• Homophone: cymbal

Noun

symbol (plural symbols)

1. A character or glyph representing an idea, concept or object.

   $ is the symbol for dollars in the US and some other countries.

   Chinese people use word symbols for writing.

   The lion is the symbol of courage; the lamb is the symbol of meekness or patience.

2. Any object, typically material, which is meant to represent another (usually abstract) even if there is no meaningful relationship.

   The dollar symbol has no relationship to the concept of currency or any related idea.

3. (linguistics) A type of noun whereby the form refers to the same entity independently of the context; a symbol arbitrarily denotes a referent. See also icon and index.
4. A summary of a dogmatic statement of faith.

   The Apostles, Nicene Creed and the confessional books of Protestantism, such as the Augsburg Confession of Lutheranism are considered symbols.

5. Visible traces or impressions, made using a writing device or tool, that are connected together and/or are slightly separated. Sometimes symbols represent objects or events that occupy space or things that are not physical and do not occupy space.
6. (crystallography) The numerical expression which defines a plane's position relative to the assumed axes.
7. (obsolete) That which is thrown into a common fund; hence, an appointed or accustomed duty.
   • Jeremy Taylor

     They do their work in the days of peace […] and come to pay their symbol in a war or in a plague.

8. (obsolete) Share; allotment.
   • Jeremy Taylor

     The persons who are to be judged […] shall all appear to receive their symbol.

9. (programming) An internal identifier used by a debugger to relate parts of the compiled program to the corresponding names in the source code.

Verb

symbol (third-person singular simple present symbols, present participle symboling or symbolling, simple past and past participle symboled or symbolled)

1. To symbolize.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Tennyson to this entry?)

See also

• punctuation

Further reading

• symbol in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• symbol in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Noun

symbol m

1. symbol

Further reading

• symbol in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
• symbol in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989

Etymology

From Ancient Greek σύμβολον (súmbolon, “a sign by which one infers something; a mark, token, badge, ticket, tally, check, a signal, watchword, outward sign”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /symboːl/, [symˈb̥oːˀl]

Noun

symbol n (singular definite symbolet, plural indefinite symboler)

1. symbol

Further reading

• symbol on the Danish Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^da

Etymology

From Ancient Greek σύμβολον (súmbolon)

Noun

symbol n (definite singular symbolet, indefinite plural symbol or symboler, definite plural symbola or symbolene)

1. a symbol

References

• “symbol” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Etymology

From Ancient Greek σύμβολον (súmbolon)

Noun

symbol n (definite singular symbolet, indefinite plural symbol, definite plural symbola)

1. a symbol

References

• “symbol” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Etymology

From Latin symbolum, cognate with English symbol.

Pronunciation

• audio

  (file)

Noun

symbol c

1. symbol

References

• symbol in Svenska Akademiens Ordlista över svenska språket (13th ed., online)
• symbol in Svenska Akademiens ordbok online.