hieroglyphic

English

Hieroglyphs typical of the Graeco-Roman period.

Alternative forms

• hieroglyphick

Etymology

First coined 1726, from Middle French hiéroglyphique, from Latin hieroglyphicus, from Ancient Greek ἱερογλυφικός (hierogluphikos), from ἱερογλυφέω (hieroglupheō, “to represent hieroglyphically”), from ἱερός (hieros, “sacred, holy”) + γλύφω (gluphō, “to carve, to engrave, to cut out”)

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˌhaɪɹəˈɡlɪfɪk/, X-SAMPA: /%haIr\@"glIfIk/

  Rhymes: -ɪfɪk

Noun

Wikipedia hieroglyphic (plural hieroglyphics)

1. (chiefly in the plural) a writing system of ancient Egypt, Minoans, Maya and other civilizations, using pictorial symbols to represent individual sounds as a rebus
2. any symbol used in this system; a hieroglyph
3. (by extension) undecipherable handwriting or secret symbol

Adjective

hieroglyphic (comparative more hieroglyphic, superlative most hieroglyphic)

1. of, relating to, or written with this system of symbols

   hieroglyphic writing

   hieroglyphic obelisk

2. difficult to decipher

Translations

of, relating to, or written with this system of symbols

• Esperanto: hieroglifa (eo)
• French: hiéroglyphique (fr)

• German: hieroglyphisch (de)
• Russian: иероглифический (ru) (ijeroglifíčeskij)

difficult to decipher

• German: hieroglyphisch (de)