totemic
Americanadjective
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of, being, or relating to a natural object or animate being, as an animal or bird, assumed as the emblem of a clan, family, or group.
Crocodiles are regarded as totemic animals in some parts of Africa, connected with a group's origin, ancestors, and place.
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of, being, or relating to anything regarded as a distinctive or venerated emblem by a group or individual.
I explained that the great horse trilogy, My Friend Flicka, was one of the most vivid and totemic elements of my childhood.
This has been a totemic issue for their party over the years, literally a signature policy during the last election.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of totemic
First recorded in 1840–50; totem ( def. ) + -ic
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.
For his followers, Nemtsov is a totemic figure in Russian political life -- seen as a once-future leader who might have taken the country on a different path.
From Barron's ● Feb. 27, 2026
Picasso’s Cubism introduced Lam not only to European modernism but also to its sources—African masks and totemic art, to which Lam, understandably, felt a familial connection.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 31, 2026
Bonner talked about the need to identify cover for totemic captain Callum McGregor in midfield and his concerns about a lack of options at left-back to ease the pressure on Tierney.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2025
The Sycamore Gap wasn't a particularly ancient tree, nor a native species, but its position gave it a totemic status.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2025
Interspersed amid these totemic items were stray Q-tips and cotton balls, lip liners, Max Factor eye makeup, mascara, blush, and everything else I used in a losing battle to make myself beautiful.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
