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
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
The 78th annual Tony Awards, Broadway’s most prestigious honors, took place on Sunday at New York City’s iconic Radio City Music Hall.
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Julia Teti, Footwear News, 9 June 2025
Each had played an iconic housewife, although Molly stood in fascinating contrast with Lucy Ricardo: the former was a fixer, the latter a firecracker, prone to fits of mischievous rage, then spanked into submission by her bandleader husband.
—Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
For Daniel Weyman, who plays Gandalf/The Stranger, a major turning point in stepping into Gandalf’s iconic boots was finally saying his name aloud for the first time.
—Lauren Coates, Variety, 9 June 2025
The move will put the company’s iconic movie studio, television production, HBO and HBO Max and DC Studios into a single entity known as Streaming & Studios.
—Stephen Battaglio, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for iconic
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Julia Teti, Footwear News, 9 June 2025
Each had played an iconic housewife, although Molly stood in fascinating contrast with Lucy Ricardo: the former was a fixer, the latter a firecracker, prone to fits of mischievous rage, then spanked into submission by her bandleader husband.
—Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
For Daniel Weyman, who plays Gandalf/The Stranger, a major turning point in stepping into Gandalf’s iconic boots was finally saying his name aloud for the first time.
—Lauren Coates, Variety, 9 June 2025
The move will put the company’s iconic movie studio, television production, HBO and HBO Max and DC Studios into a single entity known as Streaming & Studios.
—Stephen Battaglio, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for iconic
Cite this Entry
“Iconic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/iconic. Accessed 14 Jun. 2025.
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