avatar
Hinduism. the descent of a deity to the earth in an incarnate form or some manifest shape; the incarnation of a god.
an embodiment or personification, as of a principle, attitude, or view of life: Her complete loss of confidence was particularly unsettling, because generally she is the very avatar of hope.
Digital Technology. a static or moving image or other graphic representation that acts as a proxy for a person or is associated with a specific digital account or identity, as on the internet: My friend always chooses warriors as his video game avatars.Now that spring's here I've switched my Instagram avatar from a stack of books to a robin's egg.
Also called avatar mouse, mouse avatar . a mouse that is implanted with cells or tissue freshly extracted from a human being, as to test drug therapies for an individual patient or to study a disease process: Researchers transplanted samples of the patient’s tumor into specially bred avatars.
(in science fiction) a hybrid creature, composed of human and alien DNA and remotely controlled by the mind of a genetically matched human being.
Origin of avatar
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use avatar in a sentence
Fully enlightened beings may be avatars, incarnations of various deities.
Is India’s Fallen ‘God-Man’ So Different From a Megachurch Pastor? | Jay Michaelson | November 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTSome gamers ‘rape’ other avatars in Grand Theft Auto V. Is there no game over to sexism in the industry?
Gaming Misogyny Gets Infinite Lives: Zoe Quinn, Virtual Rape, and Sexism | Amanda Marcotte | August 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThose avatars of hedonism, The Europeans, are aghast at discovering that the average American vacation lasts for just 4.1 days.
Obama’s Extravagant Summer Break? More Like, America’s Vacation-Deficit Disorder | Clive Irving | August 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOne would think it would take added effort, not less, to make the avatars “see” sex as restriction, instead of identity.
The Video Game Industry Is Too White, Straight, and Male for Its Own Good | Tauriq Moosa | May 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAgain, the players with black avatars displayed stronger negative attitudes toward blacks.
Can a Video Game Make You Racist? New Study Says Yes. | Brandy Zadrozny | March 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
God they declare to be "Universal Reason," who manifests Himself by a series of "avatars."
Secret Societies And Subversive Movements | Nesta H. WebsterAll the sacred writings passed lightly over that, even the lips of the avatars were sealed.
The Hive | Will Levington ComfortThey have become totally transformed here,—they have undergone perfect avatars, and are not now the same.
The Life and Letters of Lafcadio Hearn, Volume 2 | Elizabeth BislandHis Avatars, or incarnations, which are numerous, but ten are more especially celebrated.
The Student's Mythology | Catherine Ann WhiteHe became specially the benefactor of man in his avatars or incarnations, ten in number—according to others, twenty-two.
British Dictionary definitions for avatar
/ (ˈævəˌtɑː) /
Hinduism the manifestation of a deity, notably Vishnu, in human, superhuman, or animal form
a visible manifestation or embodiment of an abstract concept; archetype
a movable image that represents a person in a virtual reality environment or in cyberspace
Origin of avatar
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for avatar
[ (av-uh-tahr) ]
In Hinduism, a god made visibly present, especially in a human form. The Buddha is considered an avatar of the god Vishnu.
Notes for avatar
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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