SYMBOLICAL Synonyms: 13 Similar and Opposite Words

symbolic

adjective

sim-ˈbä-lik

variants also symbolical

Definition of symbolic

as in representative

having the function or meaning of an object or figure that stands for something else the butterfly in the poem is symbolic of the impermanence of youth

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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 symbolic The most symbolic, perhaps, is the Capilla San Óscar Romero, located in Chiclayo, the pope’s former diocese. — Eben Levey, The Conversation, 6 Nov. 2026 The vote, which passed 75-50, is largely symbolic and does not require university leadership to step down. — Jesse Zanger, CBS News, 6 Nov. 2026 Sometimes an act, even if mostly symbolic, is still critically important. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 5 Nov. 2026 Anticipatory staircases aside, no amount of symbolic literacy can prepare you for a K-town elevator panel. — Skyli Alvarez, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Nov. 2026 See All Example Sentences for symbolic

Recent Examples of Synonyms for symbolic

Adjective

Choi Seok-cheol, representative director of the Gimhae Cultural and Tourism Foundation, based in the South Korean city of Gimhae, attended the ceremony as a witness to the signing.

— Lin Ying-Hsuan, Variety, 9 Nov. 2026
This omission leaves citizens less able to evaluate democratic systems as fair or representative and more vulnerable to misinformation and disenfranchisement.

— Ismar Volić, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026

Definition of representative

Adjective

Tyler and Materson work with representational directness in the opposite register from Green.

— Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 7 Nov. 2026
This literally cataclysmic[6] event was preceded by algebraic computations that were never just representational, as might be more the case for geometry, but were from the outset proactive.

— Artforum, Artforum, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of representational

Adjective

Along with several other candidates this cycle, Chevalier became emblematic of a new swell of progressivism in America.

— Mark Guiducci, Vanity Fair, 30 Oct. 2026
This is a play emblematic of why, for all of the ups and downs, for all of the physical development that lies ahead, Lekkerimäki is a player with a shot to be a top-six mainstay.

— Thomas Drance, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of emblematic

Browse Nearby Words

symboled

symbolic

symboling

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“Symbolic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/symbolic. Accessed 12 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of symbolic

adjective

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