This essay from 1960 was written as a tribute to the great German linguist Leo Weisberger, who was the first to recognise that Wüster’s work on terminology had relevance for applied linguistics. In it Wüster discusses the concept of meaning and presents a highly original view of the interaction between concepts and linguistic signs. While now mainly of historical interest, not least because of the terminology which reflects the changing state of linguistic knowledge in Wüster’s lifetime, this essay contains some interesting ideas which are not only worth being available in English but may serve as an inspiration for further research.