Implicature Definition

ĭm-plĭkə-chər
noun
The aspect of meaning that a speaker conveys, implies, or suggests without directly expressing. Although the utterance “Can you pass the salt?” is literally a request for information about one's ability to pass salt, the understood implicature is a request for salt.
American Heritage
The process by which such a meaning is conveyed, implied, or suggested. In saying “Some dogs are mammals,” the speaker conveys by implicature that not all dogs are mammals.
American Heritage

(pragmatics) An implied meaning that is not expressed directly.

Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Implicature

Noun

Singular:
implicature
Plural:
implicatures

Origin of Implicature

  • Coined by Paul Grice.

    From Wiktionary

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implicature