Based on the assumption that heavily entrenched grammatical constructions that convey specific forms of pragmatic meaning, the present research explores the cognitive motivation and constraints of illocution. Resting upon a thorough corpus analysis, it describes the cognitive models underlying the syntactic realizations of the basic categories of directive, commissive and expressive speech acts in English

Nuria Del Campo has recently obtained her PhD in Linguistics under the supervision of Professors Francisco José Ruiz de Mendoza and Lorena Pérez at the University of La Rioja. Her research concentrates on the cognitively oriented constructional approach to illocutionary meaning. She has authored papers in national and international journals and has participated in numerous conferences on Pragmatics and Cognitive Linguistics.

Contents: A cognitive approach to illocution – The speech act of ordering – The speech act of requesting – The speech act of advising – The speech act of offering – The speech act of promising – The speech act of threatening – The speech act of congratulating – The speech act of thanking – The speech act of apologizing – The speech act of pardoning – The speech act of condoling – The speech act of boasting.