Desperately Seeking Synonym

So I am hanging out this weekend with my 91-year-old grandfather and he tells me, "I get your press releases every day. And you know, there's one word you use too much. You must come up with a new word."

"Really? What's that?" I ask, appreciating his insights. He once told me he was the author of 9 books, tho he appears to have overestimated. One book, nine editions. The classic treatise on structural engineering. I'm tellin you—that Rosen gene don't half step.

"You use the word 'iconic' too much," he says, a little frustrated. "You know this has a religious meaning?"

"The painted icons," I say, thinking of Byzantine gold leaf numbers, wondering if he thinks this is somehow heretical?

"When I wrote my column," he tells me, reminiscing of his time as a journalist, "I used to sit with a dictionary and a thesaurus. You can't keep using the same words."

"I know. They've got that programmed into computers now," I inform him. "I don't like to reuse words."

"Yes," he agrees. "So I looked up 'iconic' for you. And you know what? There is no synonym."

I laugh. "You know, most people don't read every email. So they may not think I am overusing this word."

"You need to get a new word. I'll let you know if I find one."