Glossary:Implicature
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Implicature
/ˈɪmplɪˌkətʃə, -ˌkeɪtʃə/ (OED)
Definition
The action of implying a meaning beyond the literal sense of what is explicitly stated (OED).
Comment:
There are many different types of implicature (i.e. conversational, conventional, scalar), but they all consist of meanings which a speaker or writer intends to portray, but which he or she does not convey directly.
Examples
- Utterance: “A bus!” +> Implicature: “We must run.” (UniversalTeacher)
- Utterance: "The frame is nice" +> Implicature: "I don't like the picture in it."(OED)
- Utterance: Alan: Are you going to Paul's party? Barb: I have to work. +> Implicature: "No, I'm not going to the party" (SEP)
Related terms
Back to the glossary.
References and links
- Group 4's page on implicatures
- Definition of Implicature from the Online Oxford English Dictionary
- Definition from the Stanford Encylopedia of Philosophy
- Definition from Universal Teacher
Literature
- Bieswanger, Markus & Annette Becker (2006): Introduction to English Linguistics (2nd edition). Tübingen and Basel: A. Francke Verlag.
- Levinson, Stephen C (1983): Pragmatics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.