Phrase guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.
noun
A signifier—that is, a linguistic sign, a label or slogan—with no fixed and delimited meaning, which can therefore be interpreted in many ways and represent a range of different beliefs and aspirations.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: human-sciences, philosophy, sciences, social-science, sociology
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: floating signifier, master signifier
Antonyms: none provided
History
First attested in the 1970s, apparently originally a calque of French signifiant vide as used by Jacques Derrida among others (though not by Lacan as sometimes supposed; compare the Lacanian term master signifier). Subsequently popularised in the work of Ernesto Laclau in the 1990s.
