Icon
/ˈaɪkɒn/
Definitions
3 meaningsA person or thing that is revered or greatly admired; a symbol.
/ˈaɪkɒn/
A person or thing regarded as a representative symbol of something.
He became a fashion icon after his daring designs were shown in magazines.
💡 Simply: An icon is like a superstar or a really popular thing that everyone knows. Think of a rock star, a famous landmark, or the little pictures on your computer that you click on to open apps!
👶 For kids: A special picture or person that everyone loves and knows.
More Examples
The Eiffel Tower is an iconic landmark of Paris.
The desktop icon allows you to start the program easily.
How It's Used
"Marilyn Monroe is an icon of the 1950s."
"Click the icon to open the application."
A painting of a religious figure or scene that is revered in the Orthodox Church.
/ˈaɪkɒn/
A religious image typically painted on a small wooden panel and venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
The ancient icon was carefully preserved and displayed in the museum.
💡 Simply: In some churches, they have special painted pictures, like portraits, of important religious people. They're called icons and people show them respect.
👶 For kids: A holy picture in a church.
More Examples
Devotees often pray before icons.
The icon was decorated with gold and precious gems.
How It's Used
"The church displayed numerous icons depicting biblical scenes."
A small symbol that represents a program, file, or function on a computer or other electronic device.
/ˈaɪkɒn/
A small graphic symbol on a computer screen.
Double-click the icon to launch the software.
💡 Simply: The little pictures you click on to open apps or files on your computer or phone are called icons.
👶 For kids: A little picture on your computer that helps you do things.
More Examples
The website features a navigation bar with several icons.
I changed the icon for the application to make it more recognizable.
How It's Used
"Click the trash can icon to delete the file."
Idioms & expressions
iconic
Relating to or of the nature of an icon, especially of a famous person or thing; widely recognized and representing something else.
"The Eiffel Tower is an iconic landmark."
From Late Latin *icon*, from Greek *eikōn* ('image, likeness').
The word 'icon' initially referred to religious images. Its usage expanded to encompass symbols in general and, more recently, digital graphical representations.
Memory tip
Think of a famous person you greatly admire, like a musical 'icon'. Or, in computer context, think of the graphical 'icon' that you click on.
Practice
Word Origin
Root: eikōn