Deixis

/ˈdeɪk.sɪs/ noun

Definition

In linguistics, the way words like 'I,' 'you,' 'here,' 'now,' and 'this' point to or indicate things depending on who is speaking and when.

Etymology

From Greek 'deixis' meaning 'pointing' or 'showing.' The term was adopted into linguistics in the 20th century to describe how context determines meaning in language.

Kelly Says

Deixis is why 'I love you' means something totally different depending on who says it—the same words point to completely different people!

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