Glossary / Lexicon

Pragmatics refers to the aspect of language that focuses on its appropriate use in social and communicative contexts.

Pragmatics in psychology is a subfield of linguistics that deals with how context affects the interpretation of language. It focuses on how people use language in social situations and the ways in which meaning is conveyed beyond the literal words used. Here are some examples of pragmatics in psychology:

1. Sarcasm: Sarcasm is a type of figurative language that is often used to convey a meaning that is opposite to the literal interpretation of the words. Pragmatics helps to understand the meaning behind the sarcastic remark by taking into account the context and tone of the speaker.

2. Politeness: The way in which people use language to convey politeness is another example of pragmatics. For instance, using phrases such as "please" and "thank you" or using more formal language when speaking with someone in a position of authority.

3. Implicature: Implicature refers to the meaning that is inferred from an utterance, rather than the literal meaning of the words themselves. Pragmatics helps to understand the implicature by taking into account the context and the shared knowledge of the speaker and listener.

4. Irony: Irony is another type of figurative language that is often used in everyday conversation. Pragmatics helps to understand the ironic meaning by considering the context and tone of the speaker.

5. Deixis: Deixis refers to the use of language to point to things in the environment or to refer to people or objects. For instance, using pronouns like "he" or "she" or using words like "this" or "that" to refer to specific objects in the environment. Pragmatics helps to understand the meaning of deixis by taking into account the context and the shared knowledge of the speaker and listener.