semiotics

[ see-mee-ot-iks, sem-ee-, see-mahy- ]

/ ˌsi miˈɒt ɪks, ˌsɛm i-, ˌsi maɪ- /

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noun (used with a singular verb)

the study of signs and symbols as elements of communicative behavior; the analysis of systems of communication, as language, gestures, or clothing.

a general theory of signs and symbolism, usually divided into the branches of pragmatics, semantics, and syntactics.

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Origin of semiotics

First recorded in 1875–80; see origin at semiotic, -ics

OTHER WORDS FROM semiotics

se·mi·o·ti·cian

[see-mee-uh-tish-uhn, sem-ee-, see-mahy-], /ˌsi mi əˈtɪʃ ən, ˌsɛm i-, ˌsi maɪ-/, noun

Words nearby semiotics

semiofficial, semiology, semiopaque, semiotic, semiotician, semiotics, semioviparous, Semipalatinsk, semipalmate, semipalmated plover, semipalmated sandpiper

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use semiotics in a sentence

Because these animals were going to be surrounded by street signs we chose to use the concept of semiotics in the design project.
Finding these artful animals around Capitol Hill is as easy as ABC|Fritz Hahn|July 22, 2021|Washington Post
In semiotics, a word is called a signifier, and what it means or describes is the signified.
The true love story in Elif Batuman’s The Idiot is a love affair with language|Constance Grady|September 11, 2020|Vox
I resisted the then-loud siren song of Semiotics at Brown, and studied English instead.
How I Write: Meg Wolitzer|Noah Charney|March 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So far, the semiotics out of Copenhagen Chic have split into (melting) poles.
Copenhagen Chic: 'Style' at the Climate Summit|Rebecca Dana|December 16, 2009|DAILY BEAST

When she became an Islamic revolutionary, the chador was all about powerful semiotics.
Iran's Hillary Clinton|Geraldine Brooks|June 10, 2009|DAILY BEAST
To people attuned to semiotics, the ad was a powerful visual device.
The Civilization of Illiteracy|Mihai Nadin
Moreover, Charles Sanders Peirce considered semiotics as being the logic of vagueness.
The Civilization of Illiteracy|Mihai Nadin
His semiotics is the result of the fundamental pragmatic philosophy he developed.
The Civilization of Illiteracy|Mihai Nadin

British Dictionary definitions for semiotics

semiotics

semeiotics

/ (ˌsɛmɪˈɒtɪks, ˌsiːmɪ-) /

noun (functioning as singular)

the study of signs and symbols, esp the relations between written or spoken signs and their referents in the physical world or the world of ideasSee also semantics, syntactics, pragmatics

the scientific study of the symptoms of disease; symptomatology

Also: semiology, semeiology

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

semiotics

Origin of semiotics

OTHER WORDS FROM semiotics

Words nearby semiotics

Words related to semiotics

How to use semiotics in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for semiotics

semeiotics