This is the whisper after a confession. It is the suspension of breath. This is the question asked by someone who is desperately hoping that their hearing is flawed, that the subtext they detected is a glitch. “I don't love you like that anymore.” “What do you mean?” Please mean that you love me differently, not that you don't love me at all.
"What do you mean" is the act of holding a sentence up to the light, turning it sideways, trying to see if it is opaque or translucent. It is a challenge. It says: I do not trust the packaging of your sentiment. Unwrap it for me. what do you mean
However, meaning is not limited to language alone. It can be conveyed through nonverbal cues, such as body language, tone of voice, and facial expressions. In fact, research has shown that nonverbal communication can convey more information than verbal communication, and that people tend to trust nonverbal cues more than verbal messages (Hanna, 2013). This is the whisper after a confession
Hanna, M. (2013). Counseling and psychotherapy: A Christian perspective. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. “I don't love you like that anymore
When I ask, "What do you mean?" I am rarely asking for the dictionary definition of the words you just chose. If you say, “I think we need space,” I know what the words mean. Space : a continuous area or expanse which is free, available, or unoccupied.