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totem

noun

ˈtō-təm How to pronounce totem (audio)
Definition of totemnext
as in symbol
a device, design, or figure used as an identifying mark the bald eagle, that universally recognized totem of our country

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 totem Considering that her designs—from the quirky and unmistakable totem collars to magic floating orbs and funky-fine rings—look like nothing else and immediately spark joy, Ashley Moubayed is keeping disco very much alive. — Madeline Hirsch, InStyle, 5 Aug. 2026 As a result, his compositions have become strange totems of the internet, like global ringtones. — Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 30 July 2026 Harper’s extra glove might be more of a totem than a practical need, but there’s little reason to doubt that the franchise slugger would go to great lengths to secure a career-first World Series championship. — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026 There, he’s attacked by The Denied, a militia group of non-benders who feel like second-class citizens in this world seeking an old totem of a prior Avatar known as Sonam. — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 20 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for totem
Recent Examples of Synonyms for totem
  1. symbol
  2. emblem
  3. logo
  4. hallmark
Noun
  • But the distinctive caps – among the most recognizable symbols of the British monarchy – have become increasingly contentious for their use of real bear fur.
    — James Frater, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Pérez was particularly upset that the police had come to arrest the two men in a white van with tinted windows—a symbol of the dictatorship, which used such vehicles to disappear its victims—and that the government had not stopped this.
    — Will Freeman, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of symbol
Noun
  • Inspired by the ridgeline of a mountain seen from above, this visual mark becomes the emblem of the collection, expressing the ideas of elevation, movement, and connection to the elements.
    — Stephen Garner, Footwear News, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The whole was topped not by a cupola or a cross but a small pennant, on which the Festival emblem had been drawn in crayons in a rather amateurish hand.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of emblem
Noun
  • As promulgated last month, ballots must use envelopes with an election-mail logo that can to be scanned using high-speed processing equipment and contain a barcode unique to each voter.
    — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The Georgia Bulldog logo has showed up for years on hats, shirts and pennants, but the state Board of Regents has decided that the appearance of the familiar canine on toilet seats and obscene posters is going too far.
    — AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of logo
Noun
  • The movements that arose out of the deaths of Black people at the hands of largely white police officers and the systematic abuse of women by powerful men were hallmarks of 21st-century progressive thinking.
    — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 Sep. 2026
  • There his life was devoid of high school hallmarks such as mingling and dating women, dances and learning about the world through pop culture.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of hallmark

Browse Nearby Words

toted (up)
totem
totems
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Cite this Entry

“Totem.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/totem. Accessed 21 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on totem

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about totem

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