Philos. a general theory of signs and symbols; esp., the analysis of the nature and relationships of signs in language, usually including three branches, syntactics, semantics, and pragmatics
Origin:
Gr sēmeiōtikos < sēmeion, sign, akin to sēma: see semantic
The theory and study of signs and symbols, especially as elements of language or other systems of communication, and comprising semantics, syntactics, and pragmatics.