swastika

[swos-ti-kuh, swas-]

noun

1. a figure used as a symbol or an ornament in the Old World and in America since prehistoric times, consisting of a cross with arms of equal length, each arm having a continuation at right angles.

2. this figure as the official emblem of the Nazi party and the Third Reich.

swastika

/ ˈswɒstɪkə /

noun

1. a primitive religious symbol or ornament in the shape of a Greek cross, usually having the ends of the arms bent at right angles in either a clockwise or anticlockwise direction

2. this symbol with clockwise arms, officially adopted in 1935 as the emblem of Nazi Germany

Other Word Forms

• swastikaed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of swastika¹

1850–55; < Sanskrit svastika, equivalent to su- good, well (cognate with Greek eu- eu- ) + as- be ( is ) + -ti- abstract noun suffix + -ka secondary noun suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of swastika¹

C19: from Sanskrit svastika, from svasti prosperity; from the belief that it brings good luck

Example Sentences

Police are searching for a man who drew a swastika outside a Beverly Hills elementary school on Monday, which marked the start of the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah.

From Los Angeles Times

Sam Higgins, 54, who co-led the clean up, said most of the "vandalism" was made up of St George's Crosses, but swastikas were also found along a subway, alongside text which read: "Stop the boats."

From BBC

And sure enough, when Gray’s attorneys sent me the cover page of his file, there it was, in the upper right corner: a small doodle of a swastika.

From Salon

John Williams, 32, of Ventura admitted this week that he had vandalized public and private property with swastikas.

From Los Angeles Times

On the reverse of the coin is a design that could be a cross or could be a swastika, then recognised as a good luck symbol, surrounded by an attempt at a Latin inscription.

From BBC