phatic

Definition

Pertaining to words used to convey any kind of social relationship and whose meaning is otherwise either deemphasized or absent.

Etymology

From Ancient Greek φατός (phatós, “spoken”) - from φημί (phēmí, “I say”) - + -ic. Probably formally influenced by emphatic, which predates this term.

Example Sentences

• "You needn't be angry about the insincerity of shopkeepers' how-are-you greetings. Well-adjusted people understand that the question is phatic in the context and that that's usually no problem."
• "Some dialects of a language may use a certain term or phrase in a phatic way, even if other dialects don't."
• "Generally speaking, statements in WE are expected to be of a tautologous nature, thus fulfilling the essential phatic nature of speech."

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