noun

• A sign's physical form (such as a sound, printed word, or image) as distinct from its meaning.

  Compare with signified

  ‘In Saussure's theory of linguistics, the signifier is the sound and the signified is the thought.’

  More example sentences

  • ‘Phonology was of linguistic interest only to the extent that sound patterns functioned as signifiers.’
  • ‘They draw attention to contingent referents, the signifiers and the sign-systems that position subjects as such.’
  • ‘Social meaning and communication derive from a variety of signs and signifiers.’
  • ‘The principal concern is the preposition ‘on’ as a signifier of contact with a surface - especially an upper surface.’

  Synonyms

  symbol, mark, cipher, letter, character, numeral, figure, type, code, hieroglyph