deiktikus

Deiktikus, in linguistics, refers to a class of expressions whose interpretation depends on the context of the speech act. The term is the Hungarian for deictics, which in English are called deictics or deixis. Deiktikus expressions anchor reference to a deictic center—usually the speaker (or addressee) and the moment of utterance—and they include elements that convey person, place, and time.

The main types of deiktikus expressions are: person deictics, such as pronouns and person-marking that indicate who is involved (I, you, we); demonstratives, such as this, that, here, and there, which signal proximity or distance to the deictic center; and temporal deictics, such as now, then, later, which locate events in time relative to the utterance. Some analyses also include discourse deictics, which point to parts of the ongoing discourse (this/that referring to recent content).

Interpretation of deiktikus expressions is inherently context-bound. Shifts in perspective or narration can alter the deictic center (deictic shift). Sign languages rely heavily on deictics through pointing signs and spatial mapping, illustrating how deictic reference can extend beyond spoken language. Languages vary in how they encode deictics: some have multiple demonstratives with fine-grained distance distinctions, others place deictic information in verbal morphology or rely on gesture for reference.

In study, deixis and deictics are foundational tools for signaling reference, perspective, and temporal relations in communication. See also deixis.