1
: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of an icon
2
a
: widely recognized and well-established
an iconic brand name
b
: widely known and acknowledged especially for distinctive excellence
an iconic writer
a region's iconic wines
Did you know?
The original meaning of iconic was essentially "resembling an icon," but today it often describes what is so admired that it could be the subject of an icon. And with that use, iconic has become part of the language of advertising and publicity: companies and magazines and TV hosts encourage us to think of some consumer item or pop star or show as first-rate or immortal or flawless—absolutely "iconic"—when that person or thing is actually simply widely known and—they assert—distinctively excellent.
Examples of iconic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
However, what stood out most was not the iconic monuments but the relentless swarm of locals pushing donkey and camel rides on him.
—
Emese MacZko, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
There was speculation that the scene was inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic painting The Last Supper, depicting Jesus’s last meal with the 12 apostles, which in turn sparked claims that the tableau was an insult to the Christian faith.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 5 Mar. 2025
Frank Castle / Punisher This other iconic antihero from the comics first showed up in Season 2 of Daredevil before getting his own spinoff show anchored by Jon Bernthal’s spot-on performance.
—Ben Rosenstock, TIME, 5 Mar. 2025
This season, Paris Fashion Week is filled with a different level of excitement, thanks to new creative directors debuting at some iconic labels—Julien Klausner at Dries Van Noten, Haider Ackermann at Tom Ford, and Sarah Burton at Givenchy—and that energy must be spilling out into how people dress.
—Phil Oh, Vogue, 5 Mar. 2025
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Emese MacZko, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
There was speculation that the scene was inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic painting The Last Supper, depicting Jesus’s last meal with the 12 apostles, which in turn sparked claims that the tableau was an insult to the Christian faith.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 5 Mar. 2025
Frank Castle / Punisher This other iconic antihero from the comics first showed up in Season 2 of Daredevil before getting his own spinoff show anchored by Jon Bernthal’s spot-on performance.
—Ben Rosenstock, TIME, 5 Mar. 2025
This season, Paris Fashion Week is filled with a different level of excitement, thanks to new creative directors debuting at some iconic labels—Julien Klausner at Dries Van Noten, Haider Ackermann at Tom Ford, and Sarah Burton at Givenchy—and that energy must be spilling out into how people dress.
—Phil Oh, Vogue, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for iconic
Cite this Entry
“Iconic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/iconic. Accessed 10 Mar. 2025.
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