icon

[ahy-kon] /ˈaɪ kɒn/

noun

a picture, image, or other representation.

Eastern Church. a representation of some sacred personage, as Christ or a saint or angel, painted usually on a wood surface and venerated itself as sacred.

a sign or representation that stands for its object by virtue of a resemblance or analogy to it.

Computers. a picture or symbol that appears on a monitor and is used to represent a command, as a file drawer to represent filing.

Semiotics. a sign or representation that stands for its object by virtue of a resemblance or analogy to it.

Also, eikon, ikon (for defs 1, 2).

Origin

1565-75; < Latin < Greek eikṓn likeness, image, figure

Can be confused

icon, ikon.

Synonyms

2. See image.

Examples from the web for icons

The canonical winter icons, stellar snow crystals are thin plates of ice with six main arms, or branches.
In sum, there should be a little something for everyone in my list of alternative icons.
It is not too much to say that their media producers actually create and sustain them as pop-culture icons.
It's interesting to see how food advertising icons have morphed through the years.
Multiple animal icons might represent alliances or marriage ties between various groups.
File icons start off scattered across the flat surface.
Or, option to show large icons for visually impaired.
For the few times that the driver needed to glance at the screen, the apps would feature big icons and easy-to-read text.
There are no windows or folders, but rather an interface heavily reliant on pictographic icons.
After a few years of seeing these icons on multiple appliances, they become second nature to us.

British Dictionary definitions for icons

icon

/ˈaɪkɒn/

noun

Also ikon. a representation of Christ, the Virgin Mary, or a saint, esp one painted in oil on a wooden panel, depicted in a traditional Byzantine style and venerated in the Eastern Church

an image, picture, representation, etc

a person or thing regarded as a symbol of a belief, nation, community, or cultural movement

a person regarded as a sex symbol or as a symbol of the latest fashion trends

a pictorial representation of a facility available on a computer system, that enables the facility to be activated by means of a screen cursor rather than by a textual instruction

Word Origin

C16: from Latin, from Greek eikōn image, from eikenai to be like

Word Origin and History for icons

icon

also ikon, 1570s, "image, figure, representation," from Late Latin icon, from Greek eikon "likeness, image, portrait," related to eikenai "be like, look like," of unknown origin. Eastern Church sense is attested from 1833. Computing sense first recorded 1982.

icons in Science

icon

(ī'kŏn')
In a graphical user interface, a picture on the screen that represents a specific file, directory, window, or program. Clicking on an icon will start the associated program or open the associated file, directory, or window.

icons in Culture

icon definition

An image used in worship in the Eastern Orthodox Church and among other Christians of similar traditions. Icons depict Jesus, Mary, and the saints, usually in a severe, symbolic, nonrealistic way.