symbol

Meanings

Noun

• A character or glyph representing an idea, concept or object.
• A thing considered the embodiment of a concept or object.
• A type of noun whereby the form refers to the same entity independently of the context; a symbol arbitrarily denotes a referent. See also icon and index.
• A summary of a dogmatic statement of faith.
• The numerical expression which defines a plane's position relative to the assumed axes.
• That which is thrown into a common fund; hence, an appointed or accustomed duty.
• Share; allotment.
• An internal identifier used by a debugger to relate parts of the compiled program to the corresponding names in the source code.
• A signalling event on a communications channel; a signal that cannot be further divided into meaningful information.

Verb

• To symbolize.

Origin

• From French symbole, from Latin symbolus, symbolum, from Ancient Greek σύμβολον ("a sign by which one infers something; a mark, token, badge, ticket, tally, check, a signal, watchword, outward sign"), from συμβάλλω, from σύν + βάλλω.