Iconizes

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Depicts or portrays someone or something as a widely recognized symbol or figure
2. Shows or renders a subject as an emblematic image or character known for particular qualities
3. Represents a person, idea, or object as an iconic or representative figure widely identified with certain traits

Etymology: This is a third-person form of "iconize", so the core of the story belongs to that base verb. Its roots run back to Ancient Greek "eikōn", meaning "image" or "likeness", which passed into Latin as "icon" and then into English. The "-ize" ending comes from Ancient Greek "-izein", which was borrowed into Late Latin as "-izare" and reached English through Old French. Attached to "icon", it turns a noun for a sacred or representative image into a verb meaning to make something into such an image. The shift from the physical picture to the modern sense is the notable part. An "icon" was first a likeness, and "iconize" took that idea and applied it to people and things, so that to iconize someone is to present them as a figure whose image stands for something larger. "Iconizes" simply adds the third-person "-s" to show that the action is performed by a singular subject in the present tense.

Synonyms: symbolizes, represents, embodies, illustrates, designates

Antonyms: disparages, belittles, denigrates, ignores, overlooks