Question 1

Why do words get stuck on the tip of your tongue?

Accepted Answer

Word retrieval happens in two stages: first the mind finds the meaning, then it finds the sounds. A tip-of-the-tongue state occurs when the meaning is retrieved successfully but the connection to the word's spoken form temporarily fails, leaving you with the concept but not the sound.

Question 2

Is the tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon a sign of memory loss?

Accepted Answer

No. It is actually evidence your memory is working well, because it knows the word exists and can recall fragments like its first letter. It becomes more common with age because the connections carrying a word's sound thin over time, but the underlying knowledge stays intact.

Question 3

Why can't I remember someone's name even when I know their face?

Accepted Answer

Proper names are the most common tip-of-the-tongue trigger because they carry no descriptive meaning. Ordinary words connect to related concepts that help drag their sound into view, but a name points to just one person, giving the mind nothing to lean on to reconstruct it.

language

All essays in .

The Word That Waits: Inside the Tip-of-the-Tongue State

The Mind That Speaks in Silence