The authors promote the reintroduction of temporality into the description and analysis of spoken interaction. They argue that spoken words are, in fact, objects and that unless linguists consider how they are delivered within the context of time, they will not capture the full meaning of situated language use.

"....Their work here is unique in its ambitious and informed combination of the analysis of prosody, grammar, rhetoric, and conversational structures....For those new to prosodic analysis, Language in time is a demanding read, but it richly rewards the effort. Auer, Couper-Kuhlen, and Muller set a new standard for discourse analysts and functionally oriented linguistics such that it is both based in the data of use and accountable to conversational practices as they emerged in the production if natural and socially consequential activities."--Language in Society "For those new to prosodic analysis, Language in Time is a demanding read, but it richly rewards the effort. Auer, Couper-Kuhlen, and Muller set a new standard for discourse analysts and functionally oriented linguists with a serious commitment to rethinking linguistics such that it is both based in the data of use and acountable to conversational practices as they emerge in the production of natural and socially consequential activities."--Language in Society