Ricky06  +  430910 Mon, 15 Oct 07 02:33 AM What do we called words or phrases that used frequently in conversation but have no real meaning? E.g. "well", "you know", "man" Thanks. Ricky Ricky06 Joined on Tue, Feb 7 2006 Junior Member 53 Conversations

	Mister Micawber  +  430956 Mon, 15 Oct 07 07:18 AM One term is 'discourse devices'.  The kind you mention are for social and conversational maintenance.  Grammatically, they are 'interjections'. Mister Micawber Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004 Yokohama Veteran Member 30,805 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.'

	Ti:ʧə  +  430992 Mon, 15 Oct 07 10:35 AM A pet phrase is a phrase you use all the time, and it varies from person to person. Your particular pet phrase might be a discourse device, but it's only a pet phrase for you. So make sure you understand the difference before using this term. If I always say "OK, so", then that's my pet phrase, but if someone else only uses it occasionally, it's not a pet phrase for them. Ti:ʧə

	Mister Micawber  +  430994 Mon, 15 Oct 07 10:57 AM MM, is a discourse device the same as a discourse marker? Maybe.  Personally, I use discourse device as the more general term, considering that discourse markers are those that more specifically indicate change of turn, change of topic, connectivity, etc.  But I may be distinguishing the terms when they are really synonymous. Mister Micawber

	Philip  +  681647 Sun, 01 Mar 09 08:56 PM I don't know how common it is, but I like "articulated pauses". Philip Joined on Thu, Jun 23 2005 Veteran Member 8,738 At reise er at leve! - H. C. Andersen