mascot

noun

mas·​cot ˈma-ˌskät 

 also  -skət

: a person, animal, or object adopted by a group as a symbolic figure especially to bring them good luck

the team had a mountain lion as their mascot

Synonyms

• amulet
• charm
• fetish
• fetich
• mojo
• periapt
• phylactery
• talisman

Examples of mascot in a Sentence

The team had a mountain lion as their mascot.

she wears a mascot made of ebony and silver on a chain around her neck

Recent Examples on the Web

Shopping:For the someone who has everything, check out our splurge-worthy holiday gift ideas Where to find Target's 9-foot-tall Berry the Bear Nine of Target's stores will have a 9-foot version of the new mascot Berry the Bear. —Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 1 Nov. 2024

Bigfoot, the campaign’s mascot, is reportedly a member of the big heart club and also represents myths and misconceptions about organ donation. —Talia McWright, Twin Cities, 31 Oct. 2024

The exterior also introduces the air of whimsy that went into the design, with the Spirit of Ecstasy mascot plated in silver and gold in such a way as to suggest that the sculpture is 'really' made of gold, under a silver disguise that has worn away. —David Szondy, New Atlas, 30 Oct. 2024

Kellogg’s, for instance, recently modernized its iconic Tony the Tiger mascot to engage on social media in real-time, merging nostalgia with interactive appeal. —Esade Business & Law School, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

French mascotte, from Occitan mascoto, from masco witch, from Medieval Latin masca

First Known Use

1881, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

mascot

noun

mas·​cot ˈmas-ˌkät 

 also  -kət

: a person, animal, or object supposed to bring good luck

Etymology

from French mascotte "mascot," from a Romance word mascoto "charm," literally "little witch," from masco "witch," from Latin masca "witch"

Word Origin

The word mascot is an example of words that come to have a more pleasant meaning as they develop through the years and through many languages. The ancestor of mascot is the Latin word masca, used in the Middle Ages to mean "witch." Masca passed into the Romance speech of southern France as masco. Later it developed a derivative mascoto, literally meaning "little witch" but actually used to mean "charm" or "magic spell." A magic spell can be used for good as well as bad. Already, then, we have the beginnings of a change to a nicer idea in the basic use of the word. The word mascoto came to be mascotte in modern French, meaning a "good luck charm." It was made popular by the operetta La Mascotte in 1880. In this operetta "la mascotte" is the lovely young woman Bettina, whose influence brings victories to the army of the prince of Pisa. English later borrowed the word as mascot, with the meaning "a person or thing thought to bring good luck." Today the word is often used to refer to an animal chosen by a school or college as a good luck symbol for its sports teams.