ABSTRACT
Understanding intentions, then, is vital not just for understanding figurative language but also for understanding the connotations and motivations behind all sorts of utterances. Much of what we say is not literally true. We say what we mean-but we do not mean literally what we say-when we use figurative language and also when we joke, tell white lies, or persuade. The words of an utterance alone will not tell you if an utterance is intended as a lie, a joke, as pretense, or as sarcasm. For example, if someone asks your opinion of a new dress that you actually think is hideous, you might say it was nice for a variety of different reasons: to spare the person's feelings, to mislead her into wearing it and looking awful, to be sarcastic, or to be funny. In everyday life, these different motivations-the speaker's intentions-will be distinguished by many factors such as preceding context, intonation, facial expression, and relationship between speaker and hearer.
