| Acknowledgements | 第1-6页 |
| Abstract | 第6-9页 |
| Chapter 1 An introduction in brief | 第9-14页 |
| Chapter 2 Literature review | 第14-20页 |
| ·Vagueness- a common occurrence in language | 第14-15页 |
| ·Research on the derivations of vagueness | 第15-16页 |
| ·Necessity of vague language in communication | 第16-20页 |
| ·Ullman's argument | 第16-18页 |
| ·Vagueness and ambiguity | 第18-20页 |
| Chapter 3 A pragmatic understanding of vagueness | 第20-50页 |
| ·Justifications for the study on vagueness in pragmatics | 第20-21页 |
| ·The definition of vagueness from a pragmatic view | 第21页 |
| ·Two ways to classify pragmatic vagueness | 第21-32页 |
| ·A study on He Ziran's classification: the four types of pragmatic vagueness | 第22-29页 |
| ·A study on J.Thomas's classification: the four types of pragmatic vagueness | 第29-32页 |
| ·Integration of pragmatic principles with vagueness | 第32-48页 |
| ·Vagueness and conversational implicature | 第33-35页 |
| ·Vagueness and cooperation principle | 第35-40页 |
| ·Vagueness and politeness principle | 第40-46页 |
| ·Vagueness and relevance theory | 第46-48页 |
| ·Chapter conclusion | 第48-50页 |
| Chapter 4 Vague communication | 第50-63页 |
| ·Purpose of presenting vague communication | 第50页 |
| ·Positive effects vague expressions produce | 第50-61页 |
| ·Chapter conclusion | 第61-63页 |
| Chapter 5 Significance of the study on vagueness in Communication | 第63-70页 |
| ·Vagueness and cross-culture communication | 第63-64页 |
| ·Suggestions for foreign language teaching | 第64-68页 |
| ·Concluding remarks | 第68-70页 |
| References | 第70-73页 |
