hieroglyphic

1 of 2

adjective

hi·​ero·​glyph·​ic ˌhī-(ə-)rə-ˈgli-fik 

variants or less commonly hieroglyphical

ˌhī-(ə-)rə-ˈgli-fi-kəl 

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

hieroglyphically

ˌhī-(ə-)rə-ˈgli-fi-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

hieroglyphic

2 of 2

noun

1

: hieroglyph

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

Illustration of hieroglyphic

• hieroglyphic 2

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

Adjective

Maya scribes kept accounts of the astronomical observations in codices, hieroglyphic folding books made from fig bark paper. —Kimberly H. Breuer, Discover Magazine, 5 Apr. 2024

One of the most famous archaeological finds in history, the stone slab allowed scholars to decipher hieroglyphs for the first time, presenting the same statement in hieroglyphic script, Demotic and ancient Greek. —Kate McMahon, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024

Noun

Every design choice seems handed down through millennia of alternative human history, from arcane hieroglyphics to a slew of creative masks and veils meant to conceal the faces of those manipulating the levers of power, nearly all of them women. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 21 Feb. 2024

Inside, archaeologists discovered the jade mask, over 16 rare mollusk shells and human femurs carved with hieroglyphics. —Julia Binswanger, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle French hieroglyphique, from Late Latin hieroglyphicus, from Greek hieroglyphikos, from hieros + glyphein to carve — more at cleave

First Known Use

Adjective

1585, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1586, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

hieroglyphic

noun

hi·​ero·​glyph·​ic

ˌhī-(ə-)rə-ˈglif-ik

1

: hieroglyph

2

: a system of writing mainly in pictorial characters

especially : the picture script of the ancient Egyptian priesthood

3

: unclear or unreadable signs or writing

hieroglyphic adjective

Etymology

Noun

derived from early French hieroglyphique (adjective) "relating to or being writing that consists of pictures or symbols rather than words," derived from Greek hieroglyphikos (same meaning), from hieros "sacred, holy" and glyphikos "of carving"; so called because it referred to the system of carvings used on ancient Egyptian temples