es the area of language interaction where men and women are apt to differ, so her readers may be more aware of these differences, and less apt to take offence when such differences 'scramble' intended meanings of the speaker. This is crystallized in the title of her essay. "But what do you mean?" Men want to know the literal meaning of what is being said. Women, in contrast, are more interested in ascertaining the emotional and social implications that come through the speaking process-thus what seems like idle chatter about liking someone's shoes on the surface, to a man's ear, may actually be affirming a positive relationship, and thus be quite valuable to the f

Some common words found in the essay are:
Deborah Tannen, Italy Tannen's, , employ praise, essay mean, sexual differences,
Approximate Word count = 450
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)