1
as in emblems
a device, design, or figure used as an identifying mark
the traditional physician's symbol of a staff entwined with a snake
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2
as in signs
a written or printed mark that is meant to convey information to the reader
the symbol ¶ indicates where a new paragraph should begin symbols such as emoji that are used in texts
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Recent Examples of symbols
Kim Key, PC Magazine, 8 Sep. 2025
The symbols on the mosaic – cyrpress trees, fruit and Egyptian geese – also complement the Greek text, with researchers interpreting them as deliberate choices.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 7 Sep. 2025
Janelle and Lisa’s sensitivity to materials, language and symbols has resulted in a collection of work whose power lies in its balance between accessibility and poetry.
—Michael James Rocha, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Sep. 2025
In some societies, chickens are symbols of fertility and sacrifice; in others, they’re even considered divine.
—Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
These critics object that honoring Confederates is really celebrating noxious symbols of slavery and white supremacy.
—Time, 5 Sep. 2025
But the rush to make sense of the shooting based on these messages and symbols is misguided.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
That was when rioters trashed and toppled Confederate statues and other symbols deemed racist and discriminatory.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 4 Sep. 2025
Falling Saguaros and pollinators in peril From license plates to postcards, there are few Arizona symbols as iconic as the saguaro cactus.
—John Leos, AZCentral.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Verb
Password Generator Using the LogMeOnce password generator, users can set a password length of up to 50 characters and choose to require capital and lowercase letters, digits, or symbols.
—Kim Key, PC Magazine, 8 Sep. 2025
The symbols on the mosaic – cyrpress trees, fruit and Egyptian geese – also complement the Greek text, with researchers interpreting them as deliberate choices.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 7 Sep. 2025
Janelle and Lisa’s sensitivity to materials, language and symbols has resulted in a collection of work whose power lies in its balance between accessibility and poetry.
—Michael James Rocha, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Sep. 2025
In some societies, chickens are symbols of fertility and sacrifice; in others, they’re even considered divine.
—Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
These critics object that honoring Confederates is really celebrating noxious symbols of slavery and white supremacy.
—Time, 5 Sep. 2025
But the rush to make sense of the shooting based on these messages and symbols is misguided.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
That was when rioters trashed and toppled Confederate statues and other symbols deemed racist and discriminatory.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 4 Sep. 2025
Falling Saguaros and pollinators in peril From license plates to postcards, there are few Arizona symbols as iconic as the saguaro cactus.
—John Leos, AZCentral.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for symbols
Noun
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In later centuries, Barbary lions were gifted between royal courts, kept in menageries, and even depicted on national emblems — as in the coat of arms of Morocco and the United Kingdom.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
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For millennia, trees have stood as emblems of the profound interconnectedness of all living things, central to the universe’s structural integrity and humanity’s moral compass.—
Ellen Walker,
JSTOR Daily,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Investors flocked to bonds because of signs of a slowdown in the labor market.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
11 Sep. 2025
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On the flip side, secrecy triggers hypervigilance, where one partner obsessively scans for signs of deception or hidden threats, and naturally so given the suspicious nature of the matter.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Hermlin also faced criticism for wearing a small yellow lapel pin, which symbolizes solidarity with the 50 hostages still held by Hamas.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
5 Sep. 2025
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In Christian lore, the sycamore also symbolizes repentance, humility, and forgiveness of one’s sins, evoked by the story of the tax collector Zacchaeus, who climbed one to see Jesus.—
Ellen Walker,
JSTOR Daily,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Utah, Massachusetts and Connecticut, which provide Medicaid coverage only to immigrant children, have not received letters, for instance.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Sep. 2025
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The breach notification letters confirm that attackers accessed sensitive data that can fuel identity theft and fraud.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But, surprisingly, 2022 research published in Sleep Science hints that none of these explanations truly cover it.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
25 Aug. 2025
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The post hints that Lucky Cat Miami will return at some point, although a couple of restaurants have made the same promise only to close permanently.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Bubba is named in the suit, accused of helping to develop the film using Hulk’s trademarks without permission, and of violating a settlement agreement.—
Madeleine Marr,
Miami Herald,
5 Sep. 2025
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The domestic and international protections afforded by patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secret law supports the need for identifying the location of the IP.—
Priya Prakash Royal Esq. LL.M. MBA AEP TEP,
Forbes.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The iPhone Air represents Apple’s response to increasing competition in ultra-thin premium devices, particularly from Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
9 Sep. 2025
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This announcement represents a major milestone in the software and hardware needed to efficiently process inference queries, disaggregating inference processing into two workloads with a GPU tailored for each in the case of long-context windows greater than one million tokens.—
Karl Freund,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Low levels are linked to frailty, weaker bones, belly fat, insulin resistance and higher cardiovascular risk – all hallmarks of aging.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
8 Sep. 2025
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These are hallmarks of past Bengals hiccups.—
Paul Dehner Jr,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Symbols.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/symbols. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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