Iconize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To illustrate or portray a concept through a simplified visual that serves as an emblematic representation of its essential qualities
2. To depict or symbolize an idea using a visually simplified icon that captures its core attributes
3. To create a visual emblem that stands for a concept by reducing it to basic, recognizable elements

Etymology: "Iconize" is simply "icon" with the verb-forming suffix "-ize" attached, so the interesting history lies mostly in the two parts. The noun "icon" comes from Latin "icona," borrowed from Greek "eikōn," meaning "image" or "likeness," a word that goes back to the idea of something that resembles what it represents. The Greek suffix "-izein," which turned nouns and adjectives into verbs meaning "to make into" or "to treat in the manner of," passed through Late Latin "-izāre" and Old French "-iser" into Middle English as "-isen," and eventually settled into modern English as "-ize." Combining the two gives "iconize," which means to represent something with an image. The verb is built on the noun in exactly the way "legalize" is built on "legal" or "modernize" on "modern." Its meaning follows directly from the noun: to turn something into an icon, or to render it in picture form.

Synonyms: symbolize, represent, depict, illustrate, emblematize

Antonyms: demonize, disparage, vilify, devalue, belittle