Em"blem (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Emblemed (?);
p. pr. & vb. n.
Embleming.]
To represent by an emblem; to
symbolize. [R.]
Emblemed by the cozening fig tree.
Feltham.
Em"blem (?), n. [F. emblème, L. emblema, -atis, that
which is put in or on, inlaid work, fr. Gr. &?; a thing put in
or on, fr. &?; to throw, lay,
put in; &?; in
+ &?; to throw. See In, and Parable.]
1. Inlay; inlaid or mosaic work; something ornamental inserted in a
surface. [Obs.] Milton.
2. A visible sign of an idea; an object, or
the figure of an object,
symbolizing and suggesting another object, or an idea, by natural aptness or by
association; a figurative representation; a typical designation; a symbol; as,
a balance is an emblem of justice; a scepter, the emblem of sovereignty or power; a circle, the emblem of eternity. "His cicatrice, an emblem of war, here on his sinister cheek." Shak.
3. A picture accompanied with a motto,
a set of verse, or the
like, intended as a moral lesson or meditation.
&fist; Writers and artists of the 17th century gave much attention and study to
the composition of such emblems, and many collections of them were
published.
Syn. -- Sign; symbol; type; device; signal; token. -- Sign, Emblem, Symbol, Type. Sign is the
generic word comprehending
all significant
representations. An emblem is a
visible object
representing another by a natural suggestion of characteristic qualities, or an habitual and recognized association; as, a circle, having no apparent beginning or end, is an emblem of eternity; a particular flag is the
emblem of the country or ship which
has adopted it for a sign and with
which it is
habitually associated. Between emblem and symbol the distinction is slight, and often one
may be substituted for the other without impropriety. See Symbol. Thus, a circle is either an emblem or a
symbol of eternity; a scepter, either an emblem or a symbol of authority; a lamb, either an emblem or a symbol of meekness. "An emblem is always of something simple; a symbol may be of something complex, as of a transaction . . . In consequence we do not speak
of actions emblematic." C. J. Smith. A
type is a representative example, or model, exhibiting the qualities common to all
individuals of the class to which it belongs; as, the Monitor is a
type of a class of war vessels.
Hear it pronounced