# master signifier

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. A signifier, i.e. a linguistic sign, with no determinate content beyond itself, serving as a nodal point dominating and grounding the content of a chain of other signifiers.

## Etymology
Calque of French signifiant-maître as used by French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/master-signifier