Department of Education
Oral Communication
Using Speech Acts
First Quarter: Week 8
Mira R. Sanchez
Writer
Analiza V. Canilang
Josephine M. Montero
Dr. Ma. Carmen D. Solayao
Quality Assurance Team
Schools Division Office – Muntinlupa City
Student Center for Life Skills Bldg., Centennial Ave., Brgy. Tunasan, Muntinlupa City
(02) 8805-9935 / (02) 8805-9940
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This module was designed and written to help you acquire knowledge and
strategies on how to use different speech acts in different situations in order to
obtain successful communication and engage in a communicative situation using
acceptable and polite attitude.
After completing this module, the participant will:
1. Distinguish the different types of speech acts such as locutionary,
illocutionary and perlocutionary;
2. Demonstrate different uses of illocutionary in a variety of speech
situations; and
3. Apply learning thinking skills through various the right usage of speech
acts communication.
Directions: Identify the type of speech acts appropriate for the following situations.
Write the letter of the correct answer on the line provided.
__________1. “This court thereby proclaim you “Guilty” of all charges.”
A. Expressive
B. Commissive
C. Assertive
D. Declaration
__________2. “From this day forward, I am yours.”
A. Expressive
B. Commissive
C. Assertive
D. Declaration
__________3. “Get out.”
A. Assertive
B. Commissive
C. Directive
D. Expressive
__________4. “How dare you treat her that way!”
A. Expressive
B. Declaration
C. Assertive
D. Commissive
__________5. “I make the best pancakes there is!”
A. Expressive
B. Commissive
C. Directive
D. Assertive
__________6. “I may not be your first, but I promise I will be your last.”
A. Assertive
B. Commissive
C. Declaration
D. Directive
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__________7. “Is that a suggestion or an unsolicited advice?”
A. Expressive
B. Assertive
C. Directive
D. Commissive
__________8. “Do unto others what you want them to do to you.”
A. Expressive
B. Commissive
C. Directive
D. Assertive
_________9. “Padre Burgos is nearer and is more affordable than Limasawa Island."
1. Expressive
2. Declaration
3. Assertive
4. Expressive
__________10. “Pardon my intrusion.”
A. Declaration
B. Directive
C. Assertive
D. Expressive
__________11. “I declare that today is a local holiday.”
A. Commissive
B. Declaration
C. Assertive
D. Expressive
__________12. “You should pursue your studies.”
A. Expressive
B. Commissive
C. Directive
D. Assertive
__________13. “Can you please pass the rice?”
A. Assertive
B. Commissive
C. Directive
D. Expressive
__________14. “Thank you for reading my book.”
A. Assertive
B. Expressive
C. Commissive
D. Declaration
__________15. “The snake is under your bed.”
A. Declarative
B. Commissive
C. Expressive
D. Assertive
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A. Directions: Use the scrambled letters inside the box to identify the type
of speech being described in the following statements.
____________ 1. Provides information about a specific subject to an audience.
IFNROAMEIVTECESP
____________ 2. A speech designed to captivate an audience’s attention and regale or
amuse them while delivering a message.
NEETRANITENTMSEECHP
____________ 3. The presentation of a carefully planned and rehearsed speech,
spoken in a conversational manner using brief notes
XETEPMOAREOUSNSEECHP
____________ 4. The word-for-word iteration of a written message. In a manuscript
speech, the speaker maintains his or her attention on the printed
page except when using visual aids
RSCPITANUMSEECHP
____________ 5. The rote recitation of a written message that the speaker has
committed to memory
EMOEDIZRMSEECHP
B. Directions: Read the situations below and identify what type of speech is
being described.
____________ 6. Couple talking about their future plans and family sharing Ideas.
____________ 7. Principal’s speeches in a moving up ceremony
____________ 8. Pledge and National Anthem
____________ 9. Casual conversations with friends
____________ 10. Regular conversation in school
What are Speech Acts?
Speech acts are an important concept for students to learn because it is
essential for them to understand and create language appropriate to different
situations they might encounter. However, any speech act is teachable using the
activities provided. Students might not know which requests are appropriate for
certain situations in the target language.
We are attuned in everyday conversation not primarily to the sentences we
utter to one another, but to the speech acts that those utterances are used to
perform requests, warnings, invitations, promises, apologies, predictions, and the
like. Such acts are staples of communicative life, in the lives of the students like
you.
In addition, an appreciation of speech acts has helped lay bare a normative
structure implicit in linguistic practice, including even that part of this practice
concerned with describing reality.
Using their preparation for the lesson and the transcripts and the lists of
similarities and differences, students explore the impact of the following
contextual factors on the realization of speech acts”
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e. Culture
a. Social status f. Personality
b. Gender g. Time-period- they could reflect on
c. Age how the language choices might have
d. Social distance been different in the past and
associated social/historical factors}
The 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, Thank you 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
According to J.L Austin {1962}, a philosopher of language and the
developer of the Speech Act Theory. There are three {3} types of acts in every
utterance, given the right circumstances or context.
1. Locutionary act – is the actual act of uttering. {Utter}
Example: Please do the dishes.
2. Illocutionary act – is the social function of what is said. {Intention}
Example: By uttering the location: Please do the dishes; the
speaker request the addressee to wash the dishes. {To do an
action}
3. 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.
Example: “Please do the dishes” would lead to the addressee
washing the dishes.
As a response to Austin’s Speech Act Theory. John Searle {1976} a
professor from University of California, Berkeley, and classified illocutionary acts
into five categories.
1. Assertive – a type of illocutionary act in which the speaker expresses
belief about the truth of a proposition. Some examples of an assertive act
are suggesting, putting forward, swearing, boasting, and concluding.
Example: No one makes better pancakes that I do.
2. Directive – a type of illocutionary act in which the speaker tries to make
the addressee perform an action. Some examples of a directive act are
asking, ordering, requesting, inviting, advising, and begging.
Example: Please close the door.
3. Commissive – a type of illocutionary act which commits the speaker to
something in the future. Examples of a commissive act are promising,
planning, vowing, and betting.
Example: From now on, I will participate in our group.
4. Expressive – a type of illocutionary act in which the speaker expresses
his/her felling and emotional reactions. Some examples of an expressive act
are thanking, apologizing, welcoming and deploring.
Example: I am so sorry for not helping out in our group projects and
letting you do all the work.
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5. Declaration – a type of illocutionary act which brings a change in the
external situation. Simply put, declarations bring into existence or cause
of the state of affairs which they refer so. Some examples of declarations
are blessing, firing, baptizing, bidding, passing a sentence and
excommunicating.
Example: You are fired!
Activity 1
Directions: Do you remember these words? Recall common Speech Acts you have
heard or used and identify the statements using the italicized words below.
Greeting Inviting Promising
Apologizing Thanking Predicting
Requesting Complimenting Warning
Insulting
Speech Act Statements
It’s great!
Are you out of your mind?
Please be watchful!
Please forgive me, I don’t mean it!
Please do come on my debut.
Hello fellas! How are you today?
Will you please do me a favor?
I swear to God!
Thanks a lot
Soon, no more COVID 19 Pandemic
Activity 2
Directions: Different acts of speech happened everyday as different scenario is
given below. How would you end up the conversation to achieve a successful
communication?
How would you react!
A. Complaining classmate about the
assignment given by your teacher.
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B. You were praised by your best
friend because of your beautiful outfit
of the day.
C. Apologizing neighbor for what he/she
did after sharing false information
about your life.
Directions: Reflect on what you have learned from the lesson by answering
the questions written on the next page.
Name: ____________________________ Date Accomplished: ___________
What important lesson have you learned today?
What part of the lesson do you want to know further?
My Pledge of Commitment about the important lesson/s I have
learned today!
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Directions: Analyze the picture below based on what you have learned from the
Types of Speech Acts.
Types of Speech Act of Speech Done Why
a. Locutionary
b. Illocutionary
c. Perlocutionary
A. Directions: Read each statement carefully. Write TRUE for a right statement
and FALSE for a wrong statement. Write your answer on the line provided.
__________1. An IFID (Illocutionary Force Indicating Device) is an expression
with a slot for a verb that explicitly names the illocutionary act being
performed.
__________2. The illocutionary force of an utterance is not what it counts as.
__________3. The same utterance can potentially have quite different illocutionary
forces, promise versus warning for example.
__________4. We mostly produce well-performed utterances with no purpose.
__________5. Perlocutionary act is the act which the speaker intends to do in
saying something.
B. Directions: Read the statement carefully and answer the questions that follow.
Write the letter of the correct answer on the line provided.
1. Speech acts are: _____________
A. Actions performed.
B. Actions performed by requesting something.
C. Actions performed by the speaker via an utterance.
D. Actions performed by the listener
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2. Who is the British philosopher who first drew his attention to the many
functions performed by utterances? _______________
A. Bertrand Russell C. Jeremy Bentham
B. John Locke D. J.L. Austin
3. It is the utterance of a sentence with a determinate sense and references.
_____________
A. Perlocutionary Act C. Illocutionary Act
B. Locutionary Act D. Indirect Speech Act
4. It is the making of a statement, offer, and promise by virtue of conventional
force associated with it. _______________
A. Perlocutionary Act C. Illocutionary Act
B. Locutionary Act D. Indirect Speech Act
5. Examples of Speech Acts are: ___________
A. Utterance, question C. Speaker, listener
B. Requesting, informing D. Actions, sets
6. It is the bringing about of effects on the audience by means of uttering the
sentence, such effects being specialized to the circumstance of the utterance.
A. Perlocutionary Act C. Illocutionary Act
B. Locutionary Act D. Indirect Speech Act
7. The type of speech act that shows consequence of the words we say. _____
A. Perlocutionary Act C. Illocutionary Act
B. Locutionary Act D. Indirect Speech Act
8. An utterance considered as an action, particularly with regard to its
intention, purpose, or effect. ___________
A. Speech Context C. Speech Act
B. Speech Style D. Speech
9. The intended meaning of the utterance by speaker is __________.
A. Perlocutionary Act C. Illocutionary Act
B. Locutionary Act D. Indirect Speech Act
10. Speech acts are actions performed via __________.
A. Utterances C. Reference
B. Implicative D. Inference
11. The two types of Speech Acts are: ____________
A. Structure and Function C. Direct and Indirect
B. Message and Utterance D. Active and Passive
12. There are __________ type general functions performed by speech acts.
A. Three B. Four C. Five D. Six
13. We have a direct speech act when there is a relationship between a
structure and a __________
A. Indirect/ Request C. Indirect/ Meaning
B. Direct/ Purpose D. Direct/ Function
14. The act of producing a meaningful linguistic expression is called
A. Locutionary Act C. Perlocutionary Act
B. Illocutionary Act D. Literally Act
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15. What is Lai’s illocutionary act when she said “What?” ___________
A. Promise
B. Compliment
C. Surprise
D. Excitement
References
Bertolet, R., 1994. ‘Are There Indirect Speech Acts?’ in in S. Tsohatzidis (ed.) Foundations of
Speech Act Theory: Philosophical and Linguistic Perspectives (London: Routledge), pp. 335–49.
Hajdin, M., 1991. ‘Is There More to Speech Acts Than Illocutionary Force and Propositional
Content?’ Noûs, 25: 353–7.
Hare, R., 1970. ‘Meaning and Speech Acts,’ The Philosophical Review, 79: 3– 24.
Holdcroft, D., 1994. ‘Indirect Speech Acts and Propositional Content,’ in S.
Tsohatzidis (ed.) Foundations of Speech Act Theory: Philosophical and
Linguistic Perspectives (London: Routledge), pp. 350–64.
Hornsby, J., and R. Langton, 1998. ‘Free speech and illocution,’ Legal Theory, 4: 21–37.
König, E. and P. Seimund, 2007. ‘Speech Act Distinctions in Grammar,’ in T. Shopen (ed.) Language
Typology and Semantic Description, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 276–324.
Miller, J.H., 2007. ‘Performativity as Performance/Performativity as Speech Act: Derrida's Special
Theory of Performativity,’ South Atlantic Quarterly, 106: 219–35.
R. Harnish, 1979. Linguistic Communication and Speech Acts, Cambridge:
M.I.T. Press.
Recanati, F., 1987. Meaning and Force: The Pragmatics of Performative
Utterances, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Richard Nordquist. (2019, July 03). Speech Acts in Linguistics. Retrieved
from https://www.thoughtco.com/speech-act-
linguistics1692119#:~:text=In%20linguistics%2C%20a%20speech%20act,or%20any%20number%20o
f%20declarations.
Smith, B., 1990. ‘Toward a history of speech act theory,’ in A. Burkhardt (ed.), Speech Acts, Meaning
and Intentions: Critical Approaches to the Philosophy of John Searle, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 29–61.
VanDerBeek, D., 1990. Meaning and Speech Acts, Vols I and II, Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Answer Key
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