conversational implicature
Conversational implicature refers to the idea that speakers often imply more than what they explicitly say during a conversation. This means that listeners can infer additional meaning based on context, tone, and shared knowledge. For example, if someone says, "It's cold in here," they might be implying that they want someone to close a window, even if they don't state it directly.
This concept is part of pragmatics, a branch of linguistics that studies how context influences the interpretation of meaning. Conversational implicature helps facilitate effective communication by allowing people to convey messages indirectly, relying on the listener's ability to read between the lines.