# symbolism

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈsɪmbəˌlɪzəm/ · frequency rank #15,929

## Definitions
1. Representation of a concept through symbols or underlying meanings of objects or qualities.
2. An art movement originating in late 19th-century France and Belgium, seeking to represent absolute truths symbolically through language and metaphorical images, mainly as a reaction against naturalism and realism.
3. A combining together of parts or ingredients.

## Etymology
From symbol + -ism, sense 2 being a semantic loan from French symbolisme.

## Easily confused with
- **symbols** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/symbolism-vs-symbols)
- **symbolize** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/symbolism-vs-symbolize)
- **symbolic** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/symbolic-vs-symbolism)

## Common misspellings (15)
`smybolism`, `ssymbolism`, `sybmolism`, `symbbolism`, `symbloism`, `symboilsm`, `symbolims`, `symbolismm`, `symbolissm`, `symbollism`, `symbolsim`, `symmbolism`, `symoblism`, `syymbolism`, `ysmbolism`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/symbolism