English Explanatory Dictionary

empty signifier

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. 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.

Word forms

empty signifier empty signifiers

Etymology

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.

Synonyms

floating signifier master signifier
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