Rebus

A rebus (Latin: "by things") is a kind of word puzzle which uses pictures to represent words or parts of words, for example: H + picture of ear = Hear.

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Rebuses are used extensively in heraldry as a hint to the name of the owner of a coat of arms. This practice is known as canting. For example, the arms of the Borough of Congleton in Cheshire contain a conger eel, a lion (in Latin, leo) and a tun (another word for a barrel). This word sequence "conger leo tun" recalls the town's name.

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This style of writing became popular in the 1700's where people loved to write in letters in rebus form. They use this to make private letters harder to understand, or simply just to add spice, fun and interactivity to a written conversation.

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Nowadays, rebus puzzles are used as brainteasers and placed in IQ tests. The more popular ones around just contain plain English letters of the alphabet in different sizes, colors and other manipulations that often represent popular sayings and phrases.

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Here are examples of this type of rebus puzzle.

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CCCSAILINGCCCC

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LIE

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KING

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HEAD

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HEELS

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Another Puzzle:

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What does this rebus represent?

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1.Bob drowned Frosted Flakes

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2.Joe buried Captain Crunch

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3.Sarah threw Rice Krispies off a cliff

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4.Emily shot Cocoa Puffs

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ANSWER: serial (cereal) killers

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The answers to the puzzles above are as follows: Sailing in the seven seas, Lion King and Head over heels.

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For the first one, the word 'sailing' is in between 7 'C's hence the answer. The next one has the word lie on top of the word 'king'. When pronounced (lie on king), it sounds just like the answer. The last one shows the word 'head' over the word 'heels'.

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Rebus also refers to the use of a pictogram to represent a syllabic sound (NOT recording a concept). This adapts pictograms into phonograms (Rebus Form), a precursor to the development of the alphabet. This is perhaps one of the most important developments of writing.

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Latin: Latin is an Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. It gained great importance as the formal language of the Roman Empire. All Romance languages are descended from Latin, and many words based on Latin are found in other modern languages such as English. The ...

Word puzzle: REDIRECT Word game...

Heraldry: Heraldry is the science and art of describing coats-of-arms, also referred to as achievements or armorial bearings. Its origins lie in the need to distinguish participants in battles or jousts and to describe the various devices they carried or painted on their shields....

Rebus related Images and Photos (experimental)

Rebus 1955