monogram
Americannoun
-
a design consisting of two or more alphabetic letters combined or interlaced, commonly one's initials, often printed on stationery, embroidered on clothing, etc.
-
a single emblematic or decorative letter; applied initial.
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of monogram
1600–10; < Late Latin monogramma, irregular < Late Greek monógrammon. See mono-, -gram 1
Explanation
If you've ever had a set of stationery with your initials printed on it, you know what a monogram is — it's those three letters at the top. When you buy a towel, a blanket, or a sweater you can often pay a little extra for a monogram, to get the initials of your first, middle, and last names embroidered on them. Writing paper, wedding invitations, envelopes, and other paper goods are commonly printed with a monogram — or monogrammed. Fancy silverware can also be imprinted with a monogram, as can gold and silver jewelry. The root is Greek, monogrammon, which means "intertwined letters."
Vocabulary lists containing monogram
Write On!: Graph and Gram
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The Last Olympian
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gram (letter)
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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.
See Examples For:
Dürer was only partly successful: It was decided that Raimondi could continue copying Dürer’s work, but he was prohibited from also copying the artist’s distinctive monogram.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026
The more intricate “LV” monogram pattern, with quatrefoil and flowers, appeared in 1896 as Georges’s tribute to his late father.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
"And I lived that as an early teen. I was desperate for the monogram Gucci washbag."
From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2026
Not everyone is compelled to spend the extra money on a monogram for their jammies, but the impulse comes from the early days of life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2026
It was named Pluto at least partly because the first two letters made a monogram from Lowell’s initials.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
Creators found themselves on the defensive after attending an OpenAI event at Wildflower Farms, a resort in Hudson Valley, N.Y., where they received monogrammed pajamas and OpenAI-branded honey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Presiding over the festivities was Frank Seddio, the club’s 79-year-old chairman, who was wearing suspenders and a monogrammed dress shirt.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2025
I have a pair of monogrammed PJs from English retailer Derek Rose.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 14, 2025
I have an insatiable addiction to putting my initials on everything, so I like to get my cuffs monogrammed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2024
His presents were a scarlet dressing-gown, soft bedroom slippers, and two monogrammed nightshirts.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
The six options for customization include sleeves with wrap-around ruffles, couture-inspired pouf sleeves, feather-embellished sleeves, ruffled cuffs, sequined floral embroidery or beaded Arabesque embroidery as well as monogramming.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2020
No one says, “Gee, I think I’ll co-found a cool travel company so I can personally take over the luggage-tag monogramming program.”
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 18, 2019
Away’s monogramming team still say they do not think there is adequate ventilation in the room where they are painting the luggage.
From The Verge ● Dec. 17, 2019
Add gold embossed monogramming for an extra special touch.
From Fox News ● Nov. 28, 2018
Pottery Barn Kids’ collection includes bags with houndstooth, linen and herringbone patterns, leather trim and a monogramming option.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 31, 2018
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
