as in to represent
to serve as a material counterpart of the burned-out church emblematizes how the religious strife has destroyed that nation

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of emblematize Rather than trading in chic fragrances and powerwear, the label is emblematized by striped beach towels and bags in Jacques Demy hues. Nathan Heller, Vogue, 17 Oct. 2024 The incident, caught on video by a bystander and quickly amplified on social media, came to emblematize a painful but familiar story in San Francisco. Rachel Swan, San Francisco Chronicle, 17 Feb. 2023 Both Mulligan and Kazan are credible but can’t quite shake the film’s attempt to emblematize the journalists as icons. Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Nov. 2022 Since her story first graced the big screen in 1926, the folk heroine has, under different interpretations over the course of a century, come to variously emblematize filial piety, patriotism, feminism and, perhaps inadvertently, cultural commodification. Martin Tsai, Washington Post, 4 Sep. 2020 The trolley question is meant to emblematize tough decision-making for the purpose of moral deliberation; programming morality into our vehicles is a matter of deeper, almost mystical complexity. Betsy Morais, Longreads, 13 June 2018 The guests began to introduce themselves and deliver their tales of woe, each one seemingly handpicked to emblematize a different failure of the ACA. Katy Waldman, Slate Magazine, 14 Mar. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for emblematize
Verb
  • While it's left some passengers making backup plans and reserving rental cars, the flights canceled Friday represented just a small portion of overall flights nationwide.
    JOSH FUNK, Arkansas Online, 8 Nov. 2025
  • However, attorneys representing businesses that sued the administration said using IEEPA in that way would require explicit authorization from Congress.
    Morgan Chalfant, semafor.com, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Putnam asserted that the long-term decline in social connection and civic engagement—symbolized in his book by the fact that the number of people participating in bowling leagues has fallen off a cliff—is the core issue facing America.
    Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2025
  • The seal symbolizes the monarch's approval of state documents, meaning the decision is now official, legal and final.
    Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Emblematize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/emblematize. Accessed 17 Nov. 2025.

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