The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 11 letter word PICTOGRAPHS
P
I
C
T
O
G
R
A
P
H
S
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Icons" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case icons = pictographs.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
Crossword Answer definitions
PICTOGRAPHS noun- A picture that represents a word or an idea.
- A graphic character.
- A graph that represents numerical data using pictures.