| Acknowledgements | 第1-8页 |
| List of Tables and Figures | 第8-9页 |
| Abbreviations and Symbols | 第9-10页 |
| Abstract | 第10-12页 |
| 内容摘要 | 第12-14页 |
| Chapter One Introduction | 第14-19页 |
| ·Research question | 第15-16页 |
| ·Background of the study | 第16页 |
| ·Purpose of the study | 第16-17页 |
| ·Significance of the study | 第17页 |
| ·Organization of this thesis | 第17-19页 |
| Chapter Two Literature Review | 第19-33页 |
| ·Existing studies on meaning measurement | 第19-26页 |
| ·From the perspective of Grice's Cooperative Principle | 第20-22页 |
| ·From the perspective of Relevance Theory | 第22-25页 |
| ·From the perspective of Coherence Lines Identification | 第25-26页 |
| ·The problems of the existing studies | 第26-27页 |
| ·Lack of specification for meaning prediction | 第26-27页 |
| ·Lack of a workable linguistic instrument | 第27页 |
| ·Possible solutions to the problems | 第27-28页 |
| ·Existing studies on courtroom discourse | 第28-32页 |
| ·Overseas and domestic researches on courtroom discourse | 第28-32页 |
| ·The problems of the existing studies | 第32页 |
| ·Summary | 第32-33页 |
| Chapter Three Theoretical Framework | 第33-50页 |
| ·Predictability and acceptability | 第33页 |
| ·Properties of Predictability | 第33-37页 |
| ·Predictability in dynamic negotiation | 第33-34页 |
| ·Predictability in game theory | 第34-35页 |
| ·Predictability in choice-making | 第35-36页 |
| ·Predictability in intention | 第36页 |
| ·Predictability from the speaker's view | 第36-37页 |
| ·The meaning-prediction process | 第37-40页 |
| ·The Scale of predictability | 第40-44页 |
| ·Basic postulates | 第40-41页 |
| ·Basic degree of predictability | 第41-44页 |
| ·Completely-predictability | 第41-42页 |
| ·Half-predictability | 第42页 |
| ·None-predictability | 第42-44页 |
| ·A Suggested model of meaning prediction | 第44-49页 |
| ·Identification of the meaning types | 第44-45页 |
| ·Natural meaning and its form | 第44-45页 |
| ·Non-natural meaning and its form | 第45页 |
| ·Prediction of the means of coherence structure | 第45-46页 |
| ·The relevant elements involving in prediction process | 第46-49页 |
| ·Logic sequencing | 第46-47页 |
| ·Prefabricated chunks/prefabs | 第47-48页 |
| ·Common intelligibility | 第48-49页 |
| ·Summary | 第49-50页 |
| Chapter Four The Application of the Model to a Civil Case | 第50-70页 |
| ·Structure of trial conversation | 第50-53页 |
| ·Turn-taking | 第50页 |
| ·Adjacency pair | 第50-52页 |
| ·Initiation+Response+Follow up | 第52-53页 |
| ·The case:Dominguez V.Scott's Food Stores,INC | 第53页 |
| ·Question-Answer interactive inference mechanism | 第53-59页 |
| ·A modified model | 第54-56页 |
| ·Sequence and meaning-predictability | 第56-58页 |
| ·Types of Speaker's initiating act | 第58-59页 |
| ·Interpretation of trial discourse under the framework of meaning-predictability | 第59-69页 |
| ·Inference and predictability | 第59-61页 |
| ·Inference for predictability in conversation | 第59-60页 |
| ·Inference for predictability in question & answer mechanism | 第60页 |
| ·Inference for predictability among interlocutors | 第60页 |
| ·Predictability in dynamic inference | 第60页 |
| ·Predictability within inference intention | 第60-61页 |
| ·Question forms and predictability | 第61-63页 |
| ·Presupposition and predictability | 第63-69页 |
| ·Lexical trigger | 第64-66页 |
| ·Syntactical trigger | 第66-68页 |
| ·Contextual trigger | 第68-69页 |
| ·Summary | 第69-70页 |
| Chapter Five Conclusion | 第70-72页 |
| ·Major findings of the study | 第70页 |
| ·Implications of the study | 第70-71页 |
| ·Theoretical implication | 第70-71页 |
| ·Practical implication | 第71页 |
| ·Limitations and prospects for further research | 第71-72页 |
| References | 第72-76页 |
| Appendix | 第76-108页 |
