EN
Inter-cultural communication is carried out through contact between various social realities and interpretation schemes. It is possible to describe this phenomenon in terms of games, by comparing the different expectations of participants towards the course of communication events. Predictability in defining a situation as well as its course and participant roles are crucial for maintaining proper communication flow. Examples of predictability and unpredictability will be reviewed in the context of intercultural communication between Poles and Japanese. They will be analyzed in terms of an extended phatic function of language.