We agree with Williams (1984) that "the distinction between the mention and the pretense theories is ultimately an issue for linguistic analysis and is not a matter for psychological test at all" (p. 129). This position is consistent with both Sperber and Wilson's (1986) and our view that mention is a concept of linguistic use. Echoic reminding (or, as Sperber & Wilson put it, echoic interpretation) is, in contrast, a psychological concept and so may hold promise as the basis for a psychologically testable theory of verbal irony in general and of sarcasm in particular. One task for linguistic theory would then be to describe the linguistic devices that people use to remind one another of the intended objects of irony and sarcasm.