Illustration of rebus
: a representation of words or syllables by pictures of objects or by symbols whose names resemble the intended words or syllables in sound
also
: a riddle made up of such pictures or symbols
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Rebus and a Lack of Words
A rebus communicates its message by means of pictures or symbols whose names sound like various parts of a word, phrase, or sentence. For example, a picture of a can of tomatoes followed by the letters UC and a picture of a well means "Can you see well?" In Latin, the word rebus means "by things"; rebus is a form of the Latin word res, which means "thing." English speakers started using the word rebus for picture writing in the early 1600s.
Examples of rebus in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Down entry that crosses the rebus, 3D, ROAD, should be read by skipping the circled square.
—
Deb Amlen, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2025
More specifically, this puzzle has a bidirectional rebus, which means that the Across and Down entries require different letters to be solved.
—Elie Levine, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2025
Naomi pulled his wine-bottle rebus clue in episode two, which featured a cherry, a bomb, a painter, an owl, a hurt knee, a sewing needle, and a thumbs-up.
—Marah Eakin, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2024
Written in bits and bobs over the last two years, the emoji Haggadah was redrafted with each update of the emoji keyboard, and reads like a book-length rebus.
—Elisa Mala, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2020
Some contained complicated puzzles, acrostics, and rebuses (pictures that represent words or parts of words).
—Marilyn Yalom, Time, 14 Feb. 2018
The pointed wit card collection includes 100 cards, each with a nostalgic looking graphic with a printed word, similar to a rebus.
—Atlanta Life, ajc, 8 May 2017
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Deb Amlen, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2025
More specifically, this puzzle has a bidirectional rebus, which means that the Across and Down entries require different letters to be solved.
—Elie Levine, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2025
Naomi pulled his wine-bottle rebus clue in episode two, which featured a cherry, a bomb, a painter, an owl, a hurt knee, a sewing needle, and a thumbs-up.
—Marah Eakin, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2024
Written in bits and bobs over the last two years, the emoji Haggadah was redrafted with each update of the emoji keyboard, and reads like a book-length rebus.
—Elisa Mala, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2020
Some contained complicated puzzles, acrostics, and rebuses (pictures that represent words or parts of words).
—Marilyn Yalom, Time, 14 Feb. 2018
The pointed wit card collection includes 100 cards, each with a nostalgic looking graphic with a printed word, similar to a rebus.
—Atlanta Life, ajc, 8 May 2017
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Cite this Entry
“Rebus.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rebus. Accessed 8 Feb. 2025.
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