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Definition of "symbolize" [sym•bol•ize]

  • To serve as a symbol of: "Munich, the 1938 Hitler-Chamberlain meeting that now symbolizes the idea of appeasement” ( Jonathan Alter). (verb-transitive)
  • To represent or identify by a symbol. (verb-transitive)
  • To use symbols. (verb-intransitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "symbolize" in a sentence
  • "Neither glamorous enough to be New York nor glitzy enough to be Los Angeles, what San Antonio has come to symbolize is a basketball team that has never needed a marquee or spotlight to prosper."
  • "If it does, I fear greatly for the future of my country, for the new Republican party that Bush appears to symbolize is a toxic combination of plutocracy, intolerance, and foreign misadventure."
  • ""Eggs symbolize fertility, and the Chinese word for shrimp sounds like the word for laughter and smile, which is great for a relationship," said Ming Tsai."