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An earlier sense of effigy is "a likeness of a person shaped out of stone or other materials," so it's not surprising to learn that effigy derives, by way of Middle French, from the Latin effigies, which, in turn, comes from the verb effingere ("to form"), a combination of the prefix ex- and fingere, which means "to shape." Fingere is the common ancestor of a number of other English nouns that name things you can shape. A fiction is a story you shape with your imagination. Figments are shaped by the imagination, too; they're something you imagine or make up. A figure can be a numeral, a shape, or a picture that you shape as you draw or write.
Examples of effigy in a Sentence
Daniel D'addario, Variety, 2 Jan. 2025
The return of the Vanuatu effigies, the largest of them 11-1/2 feet long and weighing 700 pounds, posed the biggest logistical challenge the art crime team has faced, McKeogh added.
—Reuters, NBC News, 30 Aug. 2024
In a symbolic act of defiance, demonstrators burned an effigy of Bidzina Ivanishvili, the influential billionaire and founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, known for his close ties to Russia.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 2 Dec. 2024
Mounds can be found throughout the Midwest, but Wisconsin is known as the epicenter for the effigy mounds, according to researchers.
—Frank Vaisvilas, Journal Sentinel, 22 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Effigy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/effigy. Accessed 19 Jan. 2025.
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effigy
noun
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