variants
also symbolical
as in representational
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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Recent Examples of symbolic
The petition is symbolic - and the numbers signing aren't huge yet.
—
Kate Plummer, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
But Tuesday’s victory was mainly a symbolic one, at least for the time being.
—Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 2 Oct. 2025
Taiwan’s MOUs with Poland and Ukraine are not symbolic.
—Kapil Kajal, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2025
Walking into the front door of a first home purchased together can feel as symbolic as any aisle walk.
—Essence, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for symbolic
Kate Plummer, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
But Tuesday’s victory was mainly a symbolic one, at least for the time being.
—Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 2 Oct. 2025
Taiwan’s MOUs with Poland and Ukraine are not symbolic.
—Kapil Kajal, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2025
Walking into the front door of a first home purchased together can feel as symbolic as any aisle walk.
—Essence, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for symbolic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for symbolic
Adjective
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The effect is to infuse the story with an undeniable and knowing nostalgia; how quaint, at Alma’s party, to find everyone debating matters of representational consequence.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
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These models encode representational maps.—
Eric Markowitz,
Big Think,
23 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Vancouver completely manhandled a similarly representative Flames lineup, ultimately winning 8-1.—
Thomas Drance,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
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The result was representative of how both sides of the ball performed, as the offenses were unstoppable from the second quarter on, and the defenses could not buy a stop.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Symbolic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/symbolic. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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