Hieroglyphics

Podcast 1 · Introduction

Hieroglyphics

A documentary-style narration: origin, meaning, and feel.

Part of speech

noun (plural)

Pronunciation

hy-er-oh-GLIF-iks  /ˌhaɪərə(ʊ)ˈɡlɪfɪks/

Definition

The writing system of ancient Egypt, using pictorial symbols to represent sounds, words, and ideas; loosely, any writing or symbols that appear mysterious, difficult to read, or unintelligible.

Plain meaning

Hieroglyphics are the picture-symbols used in ancient Egyptian writing — a system of over seven hundred signs representing sounds, words, and ideas used for over three thousand years. Informally, hieroglyphics means any writing that is impossible to read or understand — like a doctor's handwriting.

Register

Neutral in the historical sense; informal and comic in the loosely applied sense (I can't read his hieroglyphics). The formal spelling is hieroglyphs or hieroglyphics; the singular hieroglyph refers to an individual symbol.