illocution

/ ˌɪləˈkjuːʃən /

noun

1. Also called: illocutionary act. philosophy an act performed by a speaker by virtue of uttering certain words, as for example the acts of promising or of threatening See also performative Compare perlocution

Other Word Forms

• illocutionary adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of illocution¹

C20: from _il- + _locution

Example Sentences

Austin distinguished “locution”, the act of speaking itself, from “illocution”: the thing done in the world by that act.

From Economist