icon

 
Pronunciation: /ˈʌɪkɒn, -k(ə)n/

noun

  • 1 (also ikon) a devotional painting of Christ or another holy figure, typically executed on wood and used ceremonially in the Byzantine and other Eastern Churches.
  • 2a person or thing regarded as a representative symbol or as worthy of veneration: this iron-jawed icon of American manhood
  • 3 Computing a symbol or graphic representation on a screen of a program, option, or window.
  • 4 Linguistics a sign which has a characteristic in common with the thing it signifies, for example the word snarl pronounced in a snarling way.

Origin:

mid 16th century (in the sense 'simile'): via Latin from Greek eikōn 'likeness, image'. Current senses date from the mid 19th century onwards