ABSTRACT

We examine I know as a responding action, showing that it claims to accept the grounds of the initiating action but either resists that action as unnecessary or endorses it, depending on the epistemic environment created by the initiating action. First, in responding to actions that presume an unknowing addressee (e.g., correcting, advising), speakers deploy I know to resist the action as unnecessary while accepting its grounds. Second, in responding to actions that presume a knowing addressee (e.g., some assessments), speakers use I know to endorse the action, claiming an independently reached agreement (in this way, doing “being on the same page”). Data are in American and British English.