TYPES OF

SPEECH ACT

ORAL COMMUNICATION IN CONTEXT

OBJECTIVES

Ø define speech acts;

Ø distinguish types of speech act;
Ø recognize that communicative competence requires
understanding of speech acts;
Ø demonstrate effective use of communicative strategy in a
variety of speech situations;
Ø apply learning and thinking skills, life skills, and ICT
literacy in understanding the types of speech acts; and
Ø reflect on your learning on the types of speech acts.
DEFINITION OF
SPEECH ACT
DEFINITION OF
SPEECH ACT
A speech act is an utterance that a speaker
makes to achieve an intended effect. Some of the
functions which are carried out using speech acts are
offering an apology, greeting, request, complaint,
invitation, compliment, or refusal. A speech act might
contain just one word or several words or sentences.
For example, “Thanks” and “Thank you for always
being there for me. I really appreciate it” both show
appreciation regardless of the length of the
statement.
THREE TYPES OF

SPEECH ACT
 THREE TYPES OF
SPEECH ACT
According to J. L. Austin (1962), a philosopher of language
and the developer of the Speech Act Theory, there are
three types of acts in every utterance, given the right
circumstances or context.
THREE TYPES OF
SPEECH ACT

LOCUTIONARY ACT
01 Locutionary act is the actual
act of uttering
THREE TYPES OF
SPEECH ACT

LOCUTIONARY ACT
01 “Please do the dishes.”
THREE TYPES OF
SPEECH ACT

ILLOCUTIONARY ACT
02 Illocutionary act is the social
function of what is said.
THREE TYPES OF
SPEECH ACT

ILLOCUTIONARY ACT
02 By uttering the locution “Please do
the dishes,” the speaker requests the
addressee to wash the dishes.
THREE TYPES OF
SPEECH ACT

PERLOCUTIONARY ACT
03 Perlocutionary act is the resulting act of what is
said. This effect is based on the particular context
in which the speech act was mentioned.
THREE TYPES OF
SPEECH ACT

PERLOCUTIONARY ACT
03 “Please do the dishes” would lead to the
addressee washing the dishes.
There are also indirect speech acts
which occur when there is no direct
connection between the form of the
utterance and the intended meaning.
They are different in force (i.e., intention)
from the inferred speech act.
For example, read the following utterance.

“Can you pass the rice?”

Inferred speech act: Do you have the ability to

hand over the rice?
Indirect speech act: Please pass the rice.

So while the utterance literally asks the addressee if he or

she has the ability to hand a plate of rice, it actually
indirectly requests the addressee to pass the rice to the
speaker.
PERFORMATIVES
PERFORMATIVES

Austin also introduced the concept of

performative utterances: statements which
enable the speaker to perform something just
by stating it. In this manner, verbs that execute
the speech act that they intend to effect are
called performatives. A performative utterance
said by the right person under the right
circumstances results in a change in the world.
Note that certain conditions have to be met
when making a performative utterance.
PERFORMATIVES

For example, the phrase “I now pronounce you

husband and wife,” when uttered by an
authorized person such as a judge will have the
actual effect of binding a couple in marriage.
However, if the same statement is uttered to
the same couple in the same place by someone
who is not authorized to marry them—as in the
case of the accompanying picture, a robot—
then there is no effect whatsoever because a
condition was not met.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT
 SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT
As a response to Austin’s Speech Act Theory,
John Searle (1976), a professor from the
University of California, Berkeley, classified
illocutionary acts into five distinct categories.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

ASSERTIVE
a type of illocutionary act in which the

01
speaker expresses belief about the
truth of a proposition. Some examples
of an assertive act are suggesting,
putting forward, swearing, boasting,
and concluding.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

ASSERTIVE

01 Example:

No one makes better

pancakes than I do.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

DIRECTIVE
a type of illocutionary act in which

02
the speaker tries to make the
addressee perform an action. Some
examples of a directive act are
asking, ordering, requesting, inviting,
advising, and begging.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

DIRECTIVE

02 Example:

Please close the door.

SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

COMMISSIVE
a type of illocutionary act which

03
commits the speaker to doing
something in the future.
Examples of a commissive act
are promising, planning, vowing,
and betting.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

COMMISSIVE

03 Example:

From now on, I will participate

in our group activity.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

EXPRESSIVE
a type of illocutionary act in which

04
the speaker expresses his/her
feelings or emotional reactions.
Some examples of an expressive
act are thanking, apologizing,
welcoming, and deploring.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

EXPRESSIVE

04
Example:

I am so sorry for not helping out in

our group projects and letting you
do all the work.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

DECLARATION
a type of illocutionary act which brings a

05
change in the external situation. Simply
put, declarations bring into existence or
cause the state of affairs which they refer
to. Some examples of declarations are
blessing, firing, baptizing, bidding,
passing a sentence, and
excommunicating.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

DECLARATION
Example:

05 You are fired!

By saying that someone is fired, an
employer causes or brings about the
person’s unemployment, thus changing
his external situation.
SEARLE’S CLASSIFICATIONS OF

SPEECH ACT

Always keep in mind that speech acts include

concrete life interactions that require the
appropriate use of language within a given culture.
Communicative competence (i.e., the ability to use
linguistic knowledge to effectively communicate with
others) is essential for a speaker to be able to use and
understand speech acts. Idioms and other nuances in
a certain language might be lost or misunderstood by
someone who does not fully grasp the language yet.
 TYPES OF

SPEECH ACT

ORAL COMMUNICATION IN CONTEXT