ideogram

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a written or graphic symbol that represents an idea or thing without directly representing the sounds of its name

   The crossed-out cigarette is an ideogram meaning that smoking is prohibited.

Formed from ideo- ("idea"), ultimately from Greek idea, + -gram ("something written or drawn"), from Greek gramma. The term emphasizes meaning rather than pronunciation. It should not be applied indiscriminately to every Chinese character, many of which contain phonetic information.

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