Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An image; a representation.
  • noun A representation or picture of a sacred or sanctified Christian personage, traditionally used and venerated in the Eastern Church.
  • noun An important and enduring symbol.
  • noun One who is the object of great attention and devotion; an idol.
  • noun Computers A picture on a screen that represents a specific file, directory, window, option, or program.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun An abbreviation of iconographic; of iconography.
  • noun An image or representation; a portrait.
  • noun In the Greek or Orthodox Eastern Church, a representation of Christ, an angel, or a saint, in painting, relief, mosaic. etc.
  • noun In logic, a sign or representation which stands for its object by virtue of a resemblance or analogy to it.
  • noun In scientific books, specifically, a plate, an engraving, or other printed representation.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun An image or representation; a portrait or pretended portrait.
  • noun (Gr. Ch.) A sacred picture representing the Virgin Mary, Christ, a saint, or a martyr, and having the same function as an image of such a person in the Latin Church. The term is used especially for a highly stylized and conventionalized representation of a holy person, rich in symbolism and used in devotional services in many of the eastern Orthodox churches, especially the Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches.
  • noun a symbol, especially a symbol whose form suggests its meaning or the object it represents.
  • noun (Computers) a graphical symbol for a data object whose form suggests the nature or function of the object; especially, such a symbol as viewed on the computer screen.
  • noun any object of uncritical devotion.
  • noun an outstanding example of something which has come to represent the class of things to which it belongs; a paragon; used of persons as well as objects.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An image, symbol, picture, or other representation usually as an object of religious devotion.
  • noun A religious painting, often done on wooden panels.
  • noun A person or thing that is the best example of a certain profession or some doing.
  • noun A small picture which represents something (such as an icon on a computer screen which when clicked performs some function.)
  • noun linguistics A type of noun whereby the form reflects and is determined by the referent; onomatopoeic words are necessarily all icons. See also symbol and index.
  • noun Pictual representations of files, programs and folders on a computer.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a visual representation (of an object or scene or person or abstraction) produced on a surface
  • noun (computer science) a graphic symbol (usually a simple picture) that denotes a program or a command or a data file or a concept in a graphical user interface
  • noun a conventional religious painting in oil on a small wooden panel; venerated in the Eastern Church

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin īcōn, from Greek eikōn, from eikenai, to be like, seem.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin icon, from Ancient Greek εἰκών (eikōn, "likeness, image, portrait"). Eastern Orthodox Church sense is attested from 1833. Computing sense first recorded in 1982.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word icon.

Examples

  • Tonight while listening to many showing their respect for this premier journalist; I heard the term icon and he was more than an icon.

    Walter Cronkite Taught Me What Was News Instead Of Noise 2009

  • I thought you should know. your blog no longer loads the title icon or sidebar in Safari 1.0.3 on my Mac running OS X 10.2.8.

    “Alas” not showing up properly in Safari 2004

  • I thought you should know. your blog no longer loads the title icon or sidebar in Safari 1.0.3 on my Mac running OS X 10.2.8.

    Alas, a blog » 2004 » October 2004

  • Medium (125%) and found that now half the Ribbon panels do not display the commands, just the title icon, no matter how wide I make the Ribbon (I have it docked vertically on the left).

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • Medium (125%) and found that now half the Ribbon panels do not display the commands, just the title icon, no matter how wide I make the Ribbon (I have it docked vertically on the left).

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • I set the Windows 'make text larger/smaller' zoom to Medium (125%) and found that now half the Ribbon panels do not display the commands, just the title icon, no matter how wide I make the Ribbon (I have it docked vertically on the left).

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • Medium (125%) and found that now half the Ribbon panels do not display the commands, just the title icon, no matter how wide I make the Ribbon (I have it docked vertically on the left).

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • I set the Windows 'make text larger/smaller' zoom to Medium (125%) and found that now half the Ribbon panels do not display the commands, just the title icon, no matter how wide I make the Ribbon (I have it docked vertically on the left).

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • I set the Windows 'make text larger/smaller' zoom to Medium (125%) and found that now half the Ribbon panels do not display the commands, just the title icon, no matter how wide I make the Ribbon (I have it docked vertically on the left).

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • Medium (125%) and found that now half the Ribbon panels do not display the commands, just the title icon, no matter how wide I make the Ribbon (I have it docked vertically on the left).

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • a 'connexion' to a program

    October 23, 2010

  • When Jake leaped, his trajectory made an arc that framed Grainer for me in weird vividness. He was still on his knees, propped up by the javelin, arms hanging inert, eyes half-closed, a thickened gobbet of dark blood hanging from his open mouth. The image had the remote clarity of a religious icon. From "The Last Werewolf" by Glen Duncan.

    March 30, 2012