Does it take more or less time to read ironic sentences than toread literal equivalents? Though this question has beenextensively discussed in the literature, the results are mixed(seeeg. Filik & Moxey, 2010). The present work attempt to accountfor the differences in the literature by considering the variableeffect of anticipating the intentions of a speaker duringcomprehension of ironic utterances used to answer yes/noquestions, as well as the role of explicit cues regarding theattitude of a speaker. The results show that both of these factorsinteract and together modulate the interpretation of a sentenceas ironic or literal as well as the utterance’s reading times. Weinterpret the results are broadly in line with the predictionsmade by the echoic mention account.