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hieroglyphics

British  
/ ˌhaɪərəˈɡlɪfɪks /

noun

  1. a form of writing, esp as used in ancient Egypt, in which pictures or symbols are used to represent objects, concepts, or sounds

  2. difficult or undecipherable writing

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
hieroglyphics Cultural  

  1. A system of writing with pictures that represent words or sounds. The ancient Egyptians wrote with hieroglyphics. (See Rosetta stone.)

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Present-day writing that is hard to decipher or understand is sometimes jokingly called “hieroglyphics.”

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Casual and escalated into Saafir’s crew Hobo Junction taking on all of Hieroglyphics.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 20, 2024

The first show was a play called Hieroglyphics by Anne Donovan, author of Buddha Da.

From BBC • Feb. 19, 2024

Hieroglyphics was a complete written language, and while even an illiterate person could recognize and understand some basic symbols, the scribes worked according to strict rules and had to be highly skilled.

From New York Times • Jan. 22, 2020

Hieroglyphics denoting a “TKO” - technical knock out -are above the skull.

From Washington Times • Sep. 29, 2017

Reading him some dreadful article on Egyptian Hieroglyphics from a learned magazine.

From The Ranch Girls at Home Again by Vandercook, Margaret

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.