211(b) The speaker anticipates a negative response to a request or a suggestion:
I was kind of wondering if you would be my Valentine. I’m just saying.
(2011 AMC)
Well, maybe you should try a little lower heel, I’m just saying. (2010 OLTL)
(c) The speaker is expressing an opinion that he/ she knows the hearer
won’t share:
It’s defi nitely not a good choice. I’m just sayin’. (2011 YR)
(d) The speaker is making a claim that he/ she anticipates the hearer will not
believe (the speaker also may not believe it):
It could have been an accident. I’m just saying. (2010 ATWT)
(e) The speaker is contradicting a statement the hearer has made:
Oh, funny, he always answers when I call. I’m just saying. (2009 ATWT)
(f) The speaker is responding to a negative reaction by the hearer:
Who me? I’m not accusing anyone. I’m just saying. (2010 DAYS)
Spinelli: Is that a threat? Maxie: No, I’m just saying. (2010 GH)
(g) The speaker wants to lessen the threat to the speaker’s negative face:
Frankie, you owe me a $20, man , I’m just saying. (2009 AMC)
(h) The speaker is hesitant to commit to the opinion he/ she expresses or is
unsure of the hearer’s response:
by the way, you look sexy in that dress. Just saying. (2011 DAYS)
(i) The speaker is proposing a possible course of action, but not committing to it:
Let’s say if I fi nd something the cops could use against you, it might dis-
appear. I’m just saying. (2010 AMC)
(j) The speaker is rebutting the hearer’s rejection of his/ her claim:
I’m sure you’d be pretty traumatized, too. I’m just saying. (2011 DAYS)
What this qualitative examination shows us is the (I’m) just saying/ sayin’ is
used for a wide variety of purposes, and not solely after rude comments. Rather,
it seems to undercut the force of the utterance in various ways. Primarily it
functions as a means of addressing the negative face of the hearer. By using it
one is saying that one is not really asking or suggesting or claiming anything
(which might go against the hearer’s beliefs, wishes, or desires) but one is just
merely “saying” it. It serves therefore to negate the illocutionary force of the
utterance. Note that it may be – and often is – a kind of pretense on the part of
the speaker.
7.3.3.2 All/ What I’m Saying (Is) in the SOAP Corpus. The forms all/
what I’m saying (is) enter into a range of constructions where they carry literal
7.3 (I’m) Just Saying and Related Comment Clauses