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

Relevance

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 The Keeper collar, one of the brand’s bestsellers, can be reconfigured with different totems and tassels, while Moubayed expects the Totem chain to be another strong performer. — Thomas Waller, Footwear News, 15 Sep. 2026 If the likes of Richter, Immendorff, and Polke were established totems of German art when Koether was starting out, there were also younger figures in the limelight. — Barry Schwabsky, ARTnews.com, 8 Sep. 2026 Making the film made Wishnow rethink what the function of a critic is, especially in how Christgau describes what the two core totems of criticism are. — Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Sep. 2026 The excessive proliferation of totems and masks as decor is more closely associated with Beachcomber offshoots and descendants in the ’50s and ’60s. — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for totem
Recent Examples of Synonyms for totem
  1. symbol
  2. emblem
  3. logo
  4. hallmark
Noun
  • Maribeth’s is on Grandma’s old table, where the same three coffee rings from the sixties still make the same old accidental partial Olympic symbol.
    — George Saunders, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Allison worries everyday fans are being conditioned to see the diamond – or the court or the field – as slot machines and the human athletes as spinning symbols that sometimes align as dollar signs.
    — Hannah Keyser, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of symbol
Noun
  • The brand's emblem, which is incorporated into the translucent monoblock LED taillight beneath the seat and is sculpted by the bike's lights themselves, is the most noticeable of all Fragment elements.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Paper Planes launched in 2014 and has expanded from its recognizable paper airplane emblem into apparel, outerwear and accessories.
    — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of emblem
Noun
  • An advertisement couldn’t be on the screen for longer than eight seconds, and the displays would revert to a static logo after midnight each day.
    — Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 14 Oct. 2026
  • At Lacoste, the classic crocodile logo was inverted on polos, while Gucci’s Demna and Dries Van Noten’s Julian Klausner gave rugbys a bougie Euro spin.
    — Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of logo
Noun
  • Inflation that hot is the hallmark of a tight labor market and strong demand, not a collapsing one.
    — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The brand’s new collection of 925 sterling silver writing instruments, made in England and bearing the Birmingham hallmark, is also featured.
    — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of hallmark

Browse Nearby Words

toted (up)
totem
totems
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Totem.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/totem. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on totem

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about totem

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of fervid

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All