Learning English today goes beyond vocabulary and grammar, with pragmatics playing a key role in ensuring language appropriateness. Pragmatics involves understanding the subtleties of language and how they evoke responses, crucial for effective communication in both spoken and written contexts. English literature students, in particular, face texts rich in implied meanings, requiring a grasp of conversational implicature and critical reading skills. This study examined the relationship between Iranian English literature students' knowledge of conversational implicature and their critical reading abilities. A sample of 34 students from a reading comprehension course was selected. They completed a Multiple Discourse Completion Test (MDCT) and a Critical Reading Comprehension Test (CRCT), with the results analyzed to find correlations. The analysis revealed a significant positive relationship between students' understanding of conversational implicature and their critical reading skills. To delve deeper, students were divided into three groups based on their MDCT scores, but no statistically significant differences were found among the groups. This may have been influenced by the small sample size and limited score ranges. A regression analysis further demonstrated a strong relationship between students’ knowledge of conversational implicature and their ability to understand both "what is said" and "why it is said." The findings suggest that a better understanding of language subtleties enhances critical reading, a vital skill in literary studies.
