Refers to the outward form or visual appearance of something, often in artistic, literary, or formal descriptions. Slightly more abstract than 形 (かたち).
The sculpture abstractly represents the human figure.
In the poem, images of nature are vividly depicted.
giving shape to; embodiment; visualization
hieroglyph
red globular shape; red ball signal shape
white diamond shape; white diamond signal shape (marine safety)
Compound of 形 (form, shape) and 象 (image, phenomenon). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the combination has been used to express 'visible form' or 'figure' in classical and modern Japanese.