diff --git a/lld/ELF/Driver.cpp b/lld/ELF/Driver.cpp
--- a/lld/ELF/Driver.cpp
+++ b/lld/ELF/Driver.cpp
@@ -1401,7 +1401,7 @@
   // Symbols in the dynsym could be address-significant in other executables
   // or DSOs, so we conservatively mark them as address-significant.
   for (Symbol *S : Symtab->getSymbols())
-    if (S->includeInDynsym())
+    if (!S->isPlaceholder() && S->includeInDynsym())
       markAddrsig(S);
 
   // Visit the address-significance table in each object file and mark each
@@ -1575,7 +1575,7 @@
 
   // Handle --trace-symbol.
   for (auto *Arg : Args.filtered(OPT_trace_symbol))
-    Symtab->trace(Arg->getValue());
+    Symtab->insert(Arg->getValue())->Traced = true;
 
   // Add all files to the symbol table. This will add almost all
   // symbols that we need to the symbol table. This process might
diff --git a/lld/ELF/LTO.cpp b/lld/ELF/LTO.cpp
--- a/lld/ELF/LTO.cpp
+++ b/lld/ELF/LTO.cpp
@@ -143,6 +143,8 @@
 
   // Initialize UsedStartStop.
   for (Symbol *Sym : Symtab->getSymbols()) {
+    if (Sym->isPlaceholder())
+      continue;
     StringRef S = Sym->getName();
     for (StringRef Prefix : {"__start_", "__stop_"})
       if (S.startswith(Prefix))
diff --git a/lld/ELF/MarkLive.cpp b/lld/ELF/MarkLive.cpp
--- a/lld/ELF/MarkLive.cpp
+++ b/lld/ELF/MarkLive.cpp
@@ -214,7 +214,7 @@
   // Preserve externally-visible symbols if the symbols defined by this
   // file can interrupt other ELF file's symbols at runtime.
   for (Symbol *S : Symtab->getSymbols())
-    if (S->includeInDynsym())
+    if (!S->isPlaceholder() && S->includeInDynsym())
       markSymbol(S);
 
   // Preserve special sections and those which are specified in linker
diff --git a/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.h b/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.h
--- a/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.h
+++ b/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.h
@@ -43,8 +43,6 @@
 
   Symbol *find(StringRef Name);
 
-  void trace(StringRef Name);
-
   void handleDynamicList();
 
   // Set of .so files to not link the same shared object file more than once.
diff --git a/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.cpp b/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.cpp
--- a/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.cpp
+++ b/lld/ELF/SymbolTable.cpp
@@ -32,12 +32,6 @@
 
 SymbolTable *elf::Symtab;
 
-// Set a flag for --trace-symbol so that we can print out a log message
-// if a new symbol with the same name is inserted into the symbol table.
-void SymbolTable::trace(StringRef Name) {
-  SymMap.insert({CachedHashStringRef(Name), -1});
-}
-
 void SymbolTable::wrap(Symbol *Sym, Symbol *Real, Symbol *Wrap) {
   // Swap symbols as instructed by -wrap.
   int &Idx1 = SymMap[CachedHashStringRef(Sym->getName())];
@@ -70,13 +64,6 @@
   auto P = SymMap.insert({CachedHashStringRef(Name), (int)SymVector.size()});
   int &SymIndex = P.first->second;
   bool IsNew = P.second;
-  bool Traced = false;
-
-  if (SymIndex == -1) {
-    SymIndex = SymVector.size();
-    IsNew = true;
-    Traced = true;
-  }
 
   if (!IsNew)
     return SymVector[SymIndex];
@@ -91,7 +78,6 @@
   Sym->IsUsedInRegularObj = false;
   Sym->ExportDynamic = false;
   Sym->CanInline = true;
-  Sym->Traced = Traced;
   Sym->ScriptDefined = false;
   return Sym;
 }
@@ -106,9 +92,10 @@
   auto It = SymMap.find(CachedHashStringRef(Name));
   if (It == SymMap.end())
     return nullptr;
-  if (It->second == -1)
+  Symbol *Sym = SymVector[It->second];
+  if (Sym->isPlaceholder())
     return nullptr;
-  return SymVector[It->second];
+  return Sym;
 }
 
 // Initialize DemangledSyms with a map from demangled symbols to symbol
diff --git a/lld/ELF/Writer.cpp b/lld/ELF/Writer.cpp
--- a/lld/ELF/Writer.cpp
+++ b/lld/ELF/Writer.cpp
@@ -1170,7 +1170,7 @@
   // We want both global and local symbols. We get the global ones from the
   // symbol table and iterate the object files for the local ones.
   for (Symbol *Sym : Symtab->getSymbols())
-    if (!Sym->isLazy())
+    if (!Sym->isPlaceholder() && !Sym->isLazy())
       AddSym(*Sym);
   for (InputFile *File : ObjectFiles)
     for (Symbol *Sym : File->getSymbols())
@@ -1610,7 +1610,7 @@
   finalizeSynthetic(In.EhFrame);
 
   for (Symbol *S : Symtab->getSymbols())
-    if (!S->IsPreemptible)
+    if (!S->isPlaceholder() && !S->IsPreemptible)
       S->IsPreemptible = computeIsPreemptible(*S);
 
   // Scan relocations. This must be done after every symbol is declared so that
@@ -1648,8 +1648,11 @@
   // Now that we have defined all possible global symbols including linker-
   // synthesized ones. Visit all symbols to give the finishing touches.
   for (Symbol *Sym : Symtab->getSymbols()) {
+    if (Sym->isPlaceholder())
+      continue;
     if (!includeInSymtab(*Sym))
       continue;
+
     if (In.SymTab)
       In.SymTab->addSymbol(Sym);