How do words such as “I,” “you,” “here,” and “now” depend on the context of an utterance?

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Austrian postage stamp featuring a portrait of philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, with German text above and below, and a denomination of 5 schillings. — Philosophy of language An Austrian stamp depicting Ludwig Wittgenstein.

In the philosophy of language, words such as "I," "you," "here," and "now" are classified as indexicals. These terms are defined by their dependence on the specific context of an utterance rather than having a fixed, constant referent.

The reference of an indexical varies depending on the individual speaker and the circumstances of the speech act. For example:1

I: Refers to the person currently speaking.
You: Refers to the person or people being addressed.
Here: Refers to the location of the speaker at the time of the utterance.
Now: Refers to the time at which the utterance is made.

Because their meaning is tied to the identity of the speaker, the audience, the location, or the time of the statement, indexicals function as linguistic pointers that anchor language to the immediate environment of the communication.1