Nature of the Linguistic Sign

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1. What Is a Sign?

Some people think language is just about naming things — like using the word "tree" to point to an actual tree. But this idea has problems. It assumes:

  • We already have ideas before we have words.
  • We know whether a word is just a sound or also a mental concept.
  • Naming something is simple — which it isn’t.

Actually, a linguistic sign is made of two parts:

  1. Concept (what we think of — like the idea of a tree)
  2. Sound-image (the mental sound of the word — not the real sound, but how it feels in our mind)

These two parts are joined together in our brain. So when we hear the word “tree,” we also think of the idea of a tree. And when we think of a tree, the word comes to mind.

2. Signified and Signifier

Saussure uses three terms:

  • Sign: the whole unit (concept + sound-image)
  • Signified: the concept (e.g., the idea of a tree)
  • Signifier: the sound-image (e.g., the mental sound of the word “tree”)

3. Principle I: Signs Are Arbitrary

The connection between the signifier (sound) and the signified (idea) is arbitrary, meaning:

  • There’s no natural reason why the sound “tree” means that tall plant.
  • Different languages use different words for the same thing (e.g., “tree” in English, “arbre” in French, “Baum” in German).
  • Words are based on social agreement, not natural connections.

Some may say sounds like “tick-tock” (onomatopoeia) are natural. But even these:

  • Are limited in number.
  • Differ between languages (e.g., dogs say “bow-wow” in English but “oua-oua” in French).
  • Change over time just like normal words.

The same goes for interjections like “ouch!” or “ah!” These also differ across languages and were often once regular words with specific meanings.

4. Principle II: Signs Are Linear

Since sounds happen over time, signifiers (the sound part of a word) are linear:

  • We can only hear one sound at a time, in a row.
  • Words happen in a straight line (like a sentence), not all at once.

Even when it feels like we say two things at once (like adding stress to a syllable), it's really one sound event.


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