Grice, Paul

"Language without intention is merely noise."

"Understanding requires us to assume the best of one another's communicative efforts."

"The meaning of an utterance is not exhausted by its literal content."

"We interpret speech acts through the lens of social convention and mutual benefit."

"Truth is achieved through the honest cooperation of minds."

"Conversational implicature reveals the hidden depths of ordinary language."

"The listener bears equal responsibility for understanding as the speaker does for clarity."

"To violate the maxims of conversation is to commit a kind of linguistic violence."

"Every successful conversation is a small miracle of mutual understanding."

"The principle of charity demands we interpret others charitably."

"Meaning is negotiated, not simply transmitted."

"Language is the medium through which we coordinate our lives together."

"Clarity of expression reflects clarity of thought."

"The maxims of conversation are not rules to be broken, but ideals to aspire to."

"We understand not what is said, but what is meant by the saying of it."

"Communication fails when we cease to assume the good faith of others."

"The conventional meaning of words is less important than the speaker's intention."

"Implicature allows us to say much while appearing to say little."

"To be cooperative is to acknowledge the mutual interests we share."

"The context of utterance determines its meaning and force."

"We are all implicit logicians, calculating the meanings behind every utterance."

"Discourse is a shared enterprise requiring constant mutual adjustment."

"The explicit meaning of a sentence is rarely its complete meaning."

"Understanding language means understanding the purposes for which it is used."

"Every word carries echoes of intention and implication."

"The cooperative principle is as fundamental to language as air is to breathing."

"We succeed in communication not by being literal, but by being intelligible."

"Relevance is in the ear of the hearer, not the mouth of the speaker."

"The meaning of a speech act lies in its felicitous performance."

"To communicate is to invite someone into the world of your intention."