Meanings
plural signifieds
- human sciencesThe concept, object or person that is referred to by a sign or signifier.
In Peircean terms, topics are interpretants: signifieds that become new signifiers in the endless semiotic chain of interpretations.
2012, Esti Sheinberg, Music Semiotics, page 91 more example
Here things are getting better and better for women and people of color, and gay men and lesbians, more and more integrated and open, and all you can think about is some stupid, lame problem with signifiers and signifieds.
2001, Jonathan Franzen, The Corrections
- participlepastsimple past and past participle of signify
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe meaning of a word or expression; the way in which a word or expression or situation can be interpreted
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 所指
- 所指 (suǒzhǐ)concept evoked by a sign
Czech signifikát
- signifikátconcept evoked by a sign
Finnish merkitty
- merkittyconcept evoked by a sign
French signifié
- signifiéconcept evoked by a sign
German Signifikat
- Signifikatconcept evoked by a sign
Greek σημαινόμενο
- σημαινόμενο (simainómeno)concept evoked by a sign
Japanese シニフィエ, 所記
- シニフィエ (shinifie)concept evoked by a sign
- 所記 (shoki)concept evoked by a sign
Russian означа́емое
- означа́емое (označájemoje)concept evoked by a sign
Cite this entry
signified. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/signified
“signified.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/signified. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “signified,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/signified.
Source: signified on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.