The difference between words and symbols is the same as the difference between apples and fruit; all words are symbols but not all symbols are words. For me the line is drawn at the ability use them in a conversation to exchange ideas. This sounds good to me, Zed. Just think of announcers saying, "The artist formerly known as Prince". Hey--has anybody heard how he pronounces it?
(Perhaps a PM of the answer would be in order; I don't want to sidetrack Zed's discussion.)
It's interesting, thinking about words as symbols. Having just read the thread about pot-boilers, I'll use the word POT. I believe it is true that most of us tend to ascribe meaning in terms of what we're most familiar with--or at least, to start there. To me, this arrangement of lines that form the word POT brings up a mental image of something to cook in; though not likely the exact same image as anyone else's; a secondary image that might come to mind is the idea of a chamber pot, or someone "sitting on the pot", as my father-in-law used to say; but then, for someone who regularly smokes marijuana, the immediate mental image might be of the plant. And all of that without even considering any other language.
