rebus Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a puzzle where you decode a message consisting of pictures representing syllables and words

WordNet

Re"bus noun
Etymology
L. rebus by things, abl. pl. of res a thing: cf. F. rébus. Cf. 3d things, abl. pl. of res a thing: cf. F. rébus. Cf. 3d Real.
Wordforms
plural Rebuses
Definitions
  1. A mode of expressing words and phrases by pictures of objects whose names resemble those words, or the syllables of which they are composed; enigmatical representation of words by figures; hence, a peculiar form of riddle made up of such representations. ✍ A gallant, in love with a woman named Rose Hill, had, embroidered on his gown, a rose, a hill, an eye, a loaf, and a well, signifying, Rose Hill I love well.
  2. (Her.) A pictorial suggestion on a coat of arms of the name of the person to whom it belongs. See Canting arms, under Canting.
Re"bus transitive verb
Definitions
  1. To mark or indicate by a rebus.
    He [John Morton] had a fair library rebused with More in text and Tun under it. Fuller.

Webster 1913