This paper attempts to review how the Gricean maxims contribute to the understanding of meaning cooperatively and mutually. The review identified that observing Grice’s Cooperative Principle can help one communicate with less ambiguity in conversation. Grice identified four maxims: quantity, quality, relation and manner. The paper explains how non-observance of the maxims may lead listeners to infer meanings beyond literal utterances. It concludes that the Gricean maxims remain central to pragmatics and their role in understanding meaning cannot be denied.
