Skip to content
ARCHIEENGLISH
LearnPlayWordsRanking
  • Learn
  • Play
  • Words
  • Ranking
  • Mine
← Vocabulary

emblem

UK/ˈɛmbləm/US/ˈɛmbləm/
nounB2+Occasional — familiar, but not everyday · #9,745 of 15,258leans written

Other forms: emblems

An emblem is a design that stands for a country or a group. The national emblem, a regimental emblem, an emblem of hope.

It differs from a logo in being inherited rather than designed for a purpose, which is why countries have emblems and companies have logos. The Greek behind it means something inserted, since an emblem was first a piece set into a mosaic.

Definitions of emblem

  1. 1nounemblemA design that stands for a country or a group.B2+

    “The maple leaf on the flag is the best-known emblem of Canada.”

emblem is a symbol.

Where it comes from

Greek emblema means an insertion, from emballein, to throw in — en plus ballein, to throw.

  1. Proto-Indo-European

    *gʷelH-

  2. Ancient Greek

    ἔμβλημα — an insertion

  3. Latin

    emblēma — raised ornaments on vessels, tessellated work, mosaic

  4. Old French

    embleme

  5. English, today

    emblem

Built from

  • ἐμβάλλειν · Ancient Greek — to put in, to lay on

From Old French embleme, from Latin emblēma (“raised ornaments on vessels, tessellated work, mosaic”), from Ancient Greek ἔμβλημα (“an insertion”), from ἐμβάλλειν (“to put in, to lay on”). a doublet of emblema.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

emblem in the wild

  • The State Emblem of India is the national emblem of the Republic of India and is used by the union government, many state governments, and other government agencies.

    State Emblem of India

  • The emblem is an adaptation of the Lion Capital of Ashoka, an ancient sculpture dating back to 280 BCE during the Maurya Empire.

    State Emblem of India

  • Mon, also called mondokoro or kamon, are Japanese emblems used to decorate and identify an individual, a family, or an institution.

    Mon (emblem)

  • The Blue Sky with a White Sun is the national emblem of the Republic of China, both during its history in mainland China and on Taiwan.

    Blue Sky with a White Sun

  • The Eagle, Globe, and Anchor (commonly referred to as an EGA) is the official emblem and insignia of the United States Marine Corps.

    Eagle, Globe, and Anchor

1 / 2

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.