word
Performative Utterance
per-FOR-mah-tiv UT-er-unss
/pərˈfɔːrmətɪv ˈʌtərəns/Listen
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Syllable breakdown
performativeutterance
Dictionary meaning
An utterance that does not merely describe a state of affairs but constitutes or performs an action in its saying — such as 'I hereby declare you married' or 'I promise to return'
History and origin
Austin's term from 'How to Do Things with Words' (1962); contrasted with 'constative utterances' which can be true or false
Examples
- 'I apologise' is a performative utterance — saying it constitutes the apology itself.
- Austin distinguished performatives from constatives, but later collapsed the distinction into his general theory of speech acts.
Synonyms: performative, speech act, performative speech act
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