" [T]he word utterance... can refer to the product of a verbal act, rather than to the verbal act itself. For instance, the words Would you please be quiet?, spoken with a polite rising intonation, might be described as a sentence, or as a question, or as a request.

For example, given an appropriate context, uttering the English word fire and uttering the English sentence “Your house is on fire” may effect the same speech act—that is, an assertion or warning (that your house is on fire) or a request or command (that you leave your house).