Pictograph
/ˈpɪk.tə.ɡræf/noun
A symbol or image that represents a word, object, or idea.
Did you know?Pictograph enters English through modern scholarly use, but its roots go back to Greek words for “painted” and “written,” the same ancient language that gave us many terms for secret signs and encoded knowledge.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*peik-
“to paint, decorate, or mark”
Ancient Greek
Greek
πικτός (piktós)
“painted, colored”
Ancient Greek
Greek
γράφω (gráphō)
“to write, scratch, inscribe”
19th Century
English
pictograph
“a picture used as a sign or symbol in writing”
Modern English
English
pictograph
“a graphic symbol representing a word, object, or concept”
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