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Article published In: Review of Cognitive Linguistics
Vol. 18:1 (2020) ► pp.19–41

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The role of echoing in meaning construction and interpretation

A cognitive-linguistic perspective

 | University of Almería
Published online: 17 August 2020
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https://doi.org/10.1075/rcl.00049.mas
Abstract
Echoic mention was initially proposed as part of the relevance-theoretic approach to irony ( (1986). Relevance: Communication and cognition. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar). The aim of this article is to present an account of echoing as a cognitive operation that goes beyond (and yet includes) the interpretation of ironic remarks. For this purpose, we explore the cognitive mechanisms that underlie the production and interpretation of echoic uses of both ironic and non-ironic language. In the light of the examples under scrutiny, we claim that echoic mentions afford metonymic access to the echoed scenario, which is then contrasted with the observable scenario. The relationship between the two scenarios, which ranges from identity to contrast, passing through type-token similarity and metaphorical resemblance, determines the communicative purpose of the speaker, which may convey different kind of attitudes.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Theoretical underpinnings
    • 2.1Preliminary remarks
    • 2.2Cognitive operations
    • 2.3Echoing
    • 2.4Echoic mentions, echoed scenarios, and echoing operations
  • 3.Types of resemblance between the echoed and observed scenarios
    • 3.1Type-token resemblance
    • 3.2Metaphorical resemblance
  • 4.The contrast between the echoed and observed scenarios: Irony
  • 5.Concluding remarks and further prospects
  • Notes
  • References
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This list is based on CrossRef data as of 30 november 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

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