Here is an example of a category symbol:
When you see the blue arrow with the number "1" inside of it, think "one of these". The pictures in a category symbol are meant to suggest a whole category of related items. In the symbol above, the three pictures suggest not only a knife, a gun, and a hand grenade, but also a sling shot, a bomb, and any other kind of weapon you can think of.
Here are two different ways to represent "writing instrument":