symbol1sm

[Eng. symbol; -ism.] I. Ordinary Language : 1. The investing of things, as certain practices in ritual, with a symbolic meaning; the regarding of outward things as having an inner and symbolic meaning; the representing of events by causes or types; such as the sword, the cause of death; the palm, the type of victory, . "Symbolism [is] the name applied to the system which invested the forms of Christian architecture and ritual with a symbolical meaning. The extent to which this symbolism was carried has been a subject of much controversy."-Brande and Cox. *2. An exposition or comparison of symbols or creeds. II. Gram .: The quality or state of being symbolic (q. v.).