placeholder
Americannoun
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something that marks or temporarily fills a place (often used attributively): We’re using placeholder art in this mock-up of the ad layout.
I couldn’t find my bookmark, so I put a coaster in my book as a placeholder.
We’re using placeholder art in this mock-up of the ad layout.
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Mathematics, Logic. a symbol in an expression that may be replaced by the name of any element of the set.
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a person who holds a government office, especially one appointed to the position in return for political support or favors.
Etymology
Origin of placeholder
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, elected pope in October 1958 as an elderly placeholder, had answers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025
He accidentally combined the original name of Washington with the placeholder name that they held for several years before selecting Commanders.
From Salon • Jul. 20, 2025
It could become a glamorous placeholder: I like you enough to consider marrying you and I don’t want you going anywhere while I continue to think about it.
From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2024
The British Medical Association has this week written to the health secretary to warn it is "exceedingly concerned" about the placeholder situation, after being inundated with complaints from worried medical students.
From BBC • May 4, 2024
They transformed it, changing its role from mere placeholder to number.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
