--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A linguistic system is a series of…" description: "\"A linguistic system is a series of differences of sound combined with a series of differences of ideas.\" — Ferdinand de Saussure" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96e/ferdinand-de-saussure-19549_differences_a-linguistic-system-is-a-series-of-diffe_1773960.jpg" --- # A linguistic system is a series of differences of sound… ![“A linguistic system is a series of differences of sound combined with a series of differences of ideas.” quote by Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96e/ferdinand-de-saussure-19549_differences_a-linguistic-system-is-a-series-of-diffe_1773960.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96e/ferdinand-de-saussure-19549_differences_a-linguistic-system-is-a-series-of-diffe_1773960.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/96e/ferdinand-de-saussure-19549_differences_a-linguistic-system-is-a-series-of-diffe_1773960.jpg) > “A linguistic system is a series of differences of sound combined with a series of differences of ideas.” [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Language consists of systematic sound differences linked to conceptual differences. **In simple terms:** Sound and idea differences form language. Key Takeaway Study relational structures in language. Themes linguistics semiotics structure Mood analytical academic Type theoretical educational When to use this quote - language teaching - translation - AI language models Key Concepts signs differences meaning Questions to Reflect On - How do sound differences shape meaning? - What role do concepts play in communication? A Different Perspective Complexity can obscure practical usage. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Differences Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences-ideas-1406675/) [Differences Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences-sound-1803701/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Linguistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/linguistic/) [Linguistic Series](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/linguistic-series-1803700/) [Series](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/series/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [Sound Combined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound-combined-1803702/) ## Related quotes > [It's like an electroacoustic, surround-sound cello gamba. 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They are of their era, after all, and that is their identity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/i-don-t-have-any-particular-desire-to-see-words-making-a-comeback/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) ## More by Ferdinand de Saussure > [Nearly all institutions, it might be said, are based on signs, but these signs do not directly evoke things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/nearly-all-institutions-it-might-be-said-are-based-on-signs-but-these/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [In general, the philological movement opened up countless sources relevant to linguistic issues, treating them in quite a different spirit from traditional grammar; for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/in-general-the-philological-movement-opened-up-countless-sources/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [The ultimate law of language is, dare we say, that nothing can ever reside in a single term. This is a direct consequence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/the-ultimate-law-of-language-is-dare-we-say-that-nothing-can-ever/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [It is useful to the historian, among others, to be able to see the commonest forms of different phenomena, whether phonetic, morphological or other,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/it-is-useful-to-the-historian-among-others-to-be-able-to-see-the/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [It is only since linguistics has become more aware of its object of study, i.e. perceives the whole extent of it, that it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/it-is-only-since-linguistics-has-become-more-aware-of-its-object-of/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [A language presupposes that all the individual users possess the organs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/a-language-presupposes-that-all-the-individual-users-possess-the/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [Of all social institutions language is least amenable to initiative. It blends with the life of society, and the latter, inert by nature, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/of-all-social-institutions-language-is-least-amenable-to-initiative/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [The business, task or object of the scientific study of languages will if possible be 1) to trace the history of all known languages.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/the-business-task-or-object-of-the-scientific-study-of-languages-will/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [The first of these phases is that of grammar, invented by the Greeks and carried on unchanged by the French. It never had any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/the-first-of-these-phases-is-that-of-grammar-invented-by-the-greeks/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [Written forms obscure our view of language. They are not so much a garment as a disguise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/written-forms-obscure-our-view-of-language-they-are-not-so-much-a/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [Everyone, left to his own devices, forms an idea about what goes on in language which is very far from the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/everyone-left-to-his-own-devices-forms-an-idea-about-what-goes-on-in/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [Time changes all things; there is no reason why language should escape this universal law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/time-changes-all-things-there-is-no-reason-why-language-should-escape/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [Linguistics will have to recognise laws operating universally in language, and in a strictly rational manner, separating general phenomena from those restricted to one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/linguistics-will-have-to-recognise-laws-operating-universally-in/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [Without language, thought is a vague, uncharted nebula.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-de-saussure/without-language-thought-is-a-vague-uncharted-nebula/) [Ferdinand de Saussure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-de-saussure/) > [I’m almost never serious, and I’m always too serious. 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B. 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