avatar

noun

av·​a·​tar ˈa-və-ˌtär 

plural avatars

1

: an electronic image (as in a video game) that represents and may be manipulated by a computer user

The average Fortnite player spends hundreds of hours in the game with a personal avatar, fighting with and interacting with the avatars of other players.

—Brian X. Chen

compare non-player character, npc

2

: the incarnation of a Hindu deity (such as Vishnu)

3

a

: an incarnation in human form

b

: an embodiment (as of a concept or philosophy) often in a person

… his series hero is about as pure an avatar of freedom as you will find in modern fiction …

—Sam Leith

4

: a variant phase or version of a continuing basic entity

the latest avatar of the conservative movement

Did you know?

Water. Earth. Fire. Air. These are just some of the elements and environments that video game avatars—the images representing and controlled by players—have faced since the days of Space Invaders, to say nothing of today's Pandora’s box of assorted baddies. Avatar comes from the Sanskrit word avatāraḥ, meaning “descent.” When avatar first appeared in English in the late 18th century, it referred to the descent of a deity to the earth—typically, the incarnation in earthly form of Vishnu or another Hindu deity. It later came to refer to any incarnation in human form, and then to any embodiment (such as the embodiment of a concept or philosophy), whether or not in the form of a person. All of these senses of avatar are still in use today, joined by the more recent computing/gaming sense, which may refer to “you” embodied as a mustachioed Italian plumber, for example, even if you are not, in fact, a mustachioed Italian plumber.

Synonyms

• abstract
• embodier
• embodiment
• epitome
• externalization
• genius
• icon
• ikon
• image
• incarnation
• incorporation
• instantiation
• manifestation
• objectification
• personification
• personifier

Examples of avatar in a Sentence

She has come to be regarded as an avatar of charity and concern for the poor.

She chose a penguin as her personal avatar in the chat room.

Recent Examples on the Web

This avatar also gave him clout and leverage in negotiations that less public-facing competitors could not match. —Dan Bekerman, Deadline, 1 Nov. 2024

The Grateful Dead will be honored as the 2025 MusiCares Persons of the Year, the Recording Academy announced Wednesday, 60 years after the groundbreaking jam band formed in 1965 and quickly became an avatar of the burgeoning counterculture based in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. —Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2024

Sometimes all of these little plastic avatars are a needless distraction from what is a compelling origin story by any measure. —David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Oct. 2024

Their placement on the sets is meant to put the data (and the data’s avatars in the form of Kornacki and Llamas) at the center of the action. —Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Sanskrit avatāraḥ descent, from avatarati he descends, from ava- away + tarati he crosses over — more at ukase, through entry 1

First Known Use

1784, in the meaning defined at sense 2

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Kids Definition

avatar

noun

av·​a·​tar

ˈa-və-ˌtär

1

: someone who represents a type of person, an idea, or a quality

2

: an electronic image that represents and may be manipulated by a computer user (as in a game)