iconic

adjective

icon·​ic ī-ˈkä-nik 

1

: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of an icon

2

a

: widely recognized and well-established

an iconic brand name

b

: widely known and acknowledged especially for distinctive excellence

an iconic writer

a region's iconic wines

iconically

ī-ˈkä-ni-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Did you know?

The original meaning of iconic was essentially "resembling an icon," but today it often describes what is so admired that it could be the subject of an icon. And with that use, iconic has become part of the language of advertising and publicity: companies and magazines and TV hosts encourage us to think of some consumer item or pop star or show as first-rate or immortal or flawless—absolutely "iconic"—when that person or thing is actually simply widely known and—they assert—distinctively excellent.

Examples of iconic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Both Glamour commerce director Brie Schwartz and style commerce editor Jake Henry Smith own and love Melissa’s iconic Possession sandals, which kicked off the original jelly sandals craze back in the ’80s. —Jake Henry Smith, Glamour, 15 July 2025

Teff is probably best known as the core ingredient in injera, Ethiopia’s iconic spongy bread, but the grain also has plenty of other uses. —Caroline Tien, SELF, 15 July 2025

Over the years, the two iconic singers have even collaborated to give us many more glorious pop culture moments. —Christian Allaire, Vogue, 14 July 2025

To encourage people to pick up its iconic red and white buckets, the chain is giving them away for free. —Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 14 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Late Latin īconicus "of a likeness or image," borrowed from Greek eikonikós "(of a statue) in the likeness (of someone)" (Late Greek, "pertaining to or employing images, representative, symbolic"), from eikon-, eikṓn "image, likeness" + -ikos -ic entry 1 — more at icon

First Known Use

1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for iconic

• atonic
• benthonic
• bionic
• bosonic
• bubonic
• canonic
• carbonic
• cyclonic
• demonic
• dystonic
• hadronic
• harmonic