Illustration of hieroglyphic
- hieroglyphic 2
hi·ero·glyph·ic
ˌhī-(ə-)rə-ˈgli-fik 
variants
or less commonly hieroglyphical
1
: written in, constituting, or belonging to a system of writing mainly in pictorial characters
2
: inscribed with hieroglyphic
3
: resembling hieroglyphic in difficulty of decipherment
1
2
: a system of hieroglyphic writing
specifically
: the picture script of the ancient Egyptian priesthood
—often used in plural but singular or plural in construction
3
: something that resembles a hieroglyph especially in difficulty of decipherment
… they could see the whole of London. … Its bewildering squares … an enormous hieroglyphic which man must decipher or die.—
G. K. Chesterton
G. K. Chesterton
Did you know?
If hieroglyphic writing is "all Greek to you," you know more about the etymology of hieroglyphic than you might think. That word comes from the Greek hieroglyphikos, which means "sacred carving" (from hieros, meaning "sacred," and glyphein, meaning "to carve"). The ancient Greeks who named hieroglyphic writing reserved that term for the picture writing they found carved in temple walls or on public monuments in Egypt; it was distinguished from writings done in ink on papyrus or other smooth surfaces. But since making their first appearances in English in the 1580s, both the noun hieroglyphics and the adjective hieroglyphic have been extended to apply to the picture writing of various cultures, whether or not those writings were carved or sacred.
Examples of hieroglyphic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Paige Reddinger,
Robb Report,
12 June 2026
Through the use of backlighting, their silhouettes will be thrown onto the facing walls to form a shadow sculpture evoking primitive graffiti or a hieroglyphic-like language.
—
Sandra Salibian,
Footwear News,
9 June 2026
Encyclopedia Britannica,
12 May 2026
Chip Morris carving entrance doors like driftwood hieroglyphics, Yvonne Domenge installing bronzes that catch light like honey, Marina Silva painting fertility goddesses across the yoga shala.
—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hieroglyphic
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Adjective
Although the theme of the collection is rooted in antiquity, many of the jewels also took inspiration from modern art such as the ’80s Memphis Movement or, in the case of the hieroglyphic clips, Frank Stella’s geometric shapes and bold colors of the ’70s.
—
Paige Reddinger,
Robb Report,
12 June 2026
Through the use of backlighting, their silhouettes will be thrown onto the facing walls to form a shadow sculpture evoking primitive graffiti or a hieroglyphic-like language.
—
Sandra Salibian,
Footwear News,
9 June 2026
Noun
History of Telecommunications in Canada Scholars such as Harold Innis connect telecommunications to the entire history of moving information across space and time, including the engraving of hieroglyphics on stone or the invention of paper.
—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
12 May 2026
Chip Morris carving entrance doors like driftwood hieroglyphics, Yvonne Domenge installing bronzes that catch light like honey, Marina Silva painting fertility goddesses across the yoga shala.
—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hieroglyphic
Cite this Entry
“Hieroglyphic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hieroglyphic. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
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