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hieroglyphic
4 dictionary results for: Hieroglyph
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
hi·er·o·glyph·ic 
[hahy-er-uh-glif-ik, hahy-ruh-] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[hahy-er-uh-glif-ik, hahy-ruh-] Pronunciation Key –adjective
–noun
| 1. | Also, hi·er·o·glyph·i·cal. designating or pertaining to a pictographic script, particularly that of the ancient Egyptians, in which many of the symbols are conventionalized, recognizable pictures of the things represented. |
| 2. | inscribed with hieroglyphic symbols. |
| 3. | hard to decipher; hard to read. |
| 4. | Also, hi·er·o·glyph. a hieroglyphic symbol. |
| 5. | Usually, hieroglyphics. hieroglyphic writing. |
| 6. | a figure or symbol with a hidden meaning. |
| 7. | hieroglyphics, handwriting, figures, characters, code, etc., difficult to decipher: the confusing hieroglyphics of advanced mathematics. |
[Origin: 1575–85; < LL hieroglyphicus < Gk hieroglyphikós pertaining to sacred writing. See hiero-, glyphic]
] —Related forms
hi·er·o·glyph·i·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| hi·er·o·glyph
(hī'ər-ə-glĭf', hī'rə-) Pronunciation Key
n.
|
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| hieroglyph | |
noun | |
| 1. | writing that resembles hieroglyphics (usually by being illegible) |
| 2. | a writing system using picture symbols; used in ancient Egypt |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Hieroglyph
Hi"er*o*glyph\, Hieroglyphic \Hi`er*o*glyph"ic\, n. [Cf. F. hi['e]roglyphe. See Hieroglyphic, a.]1. A sacred character; a character in picture writing, as of the ancient Egyptians, Mexicans, etc. Specifically, in the plural, the picture writing of the ancient Egyptian priests. It is made up of three, or, as some say, four classes of characters: first, the hieroglyphic proper, or figurative, in which the representation of the object conveys the idea of the object itself; second, the ideographic, consisting of symbols representing ideas, not sounds, as an ostrich feather is a symbol of truth; third, the phonetic, consisting of symbols employed as syllables of a word, or as letters of the alphabet, having a certain sound, as a hawk represented the vowel a. 2. Any character or figure which has, or is supposed to have, a hidden or mysterious significance; hence, any unintelligible or illegible character or mark. [Colloq.]
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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