Main Entry: ¹hi·ero·glyph·ic

Pronunciation: \ˌhī-(ə-)rə-ˈgli-fik\

Variant(s): also hi·ero·glyph·i·cal \-fi-kəl\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Middle French hieroglyphique, from Late Latin hieroglyphicus, from Greek hieroglyphikos, from hieros + glyphein to carve — more at cleave

Date: 1585

1 : written in, constituting, or belonging to a system of writing mainly in pictorial characters
2 : inscribed with hieroglyphic
3 : resembling hieroglyphic in difficulty of decipherment

— hi·ero·glyph·i·cal·ly \-fi-k(ə-)lē\ adverb