HIEROGLYPH

hieroglyph, hieroglyphic

(noun) a writing system using picture symbols; used in ancient Egypt

hieroglyph, hieroglyphic

(noun) writing that resembles hieroglyphics (usually by being illegible)

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

hieroglyph (plural hieroglyphs)

An element of an ideographic (hieroglyphic) writing system.

(informal) Any obscure or baffling symbol.

Verb

hieroglyph (third-person singular simple present hieroglyphs, present participle hieroglyphing, simple past and past participle hieroglyphed)

To represent by hieroglyphs.

Source: Wiktionary

Hi"er*o*glyph, Hi`er*o*glyph"ic, n. Etym: [Cf. F. hiéroglyphe. See Hieroglyphic, a.]

1. A sacred character; a character in picture writing, as of the ancient Egyptians, Mexicans, etc. Specifically, in the plural, the picture writing of the ancient Egyptian priests. It is made up of three, or, as some say, four classes of characters: first, the hieroglyphic proper, or figurative, in which the representation of the object conveys the idea of the object itself; second, the ideographic, consisting of symbols representing ideas, not sounds, as an ostrich feather is a symbol of truth; third, the phonetic, consisting of symbols employed as syllables of a word, or as letters of the alphabet, having a certain sound, as a hawk represented the vowel a.

2. Any character or figure which has, or is supposed to have, a hidden or mysterious significance; hence, any unintelligible or illegible character or mark. [Colloq.]

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition