To represent is to report or design information with signs, including symbols, which re-present specific elements.
A representation is a form which represents another form.
Representations usually represent forms. They can only represent unformed or pure elements within well-defined contexts.
Representations often represent forms by using different elements and relationships; however, a representation may re-use any number of resources.
Representation often translates elements into fundamentally different contexts. For example, we often represent experiential elements as ideas which we relate to each other with concepts-- and, our concepts often represent physical, mental and social experiences.