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Litera
he article is devoted to the description of a voice message in order to introduce a definition of this communicative phenomenon. Despite the contradictory nature of this phenomenon, its popularity has been growing since 2013 to the present day. However, a voice message still does not have a clear definition, as it has specific characteristics that make it impossible to classify this phenomenon as either a genre of speech or a form of communication, which makes it a unique phenomenon. The object of the research is the nature of voice communication in modern communication. The subject of the study is the characteristics of voice communication and the history of the development of voice communication in the context of the introduction of new technical functions motivated by the needs of users, which makes it possible to distinguish this communication format into a separate type of discourse. General scientific methods of analysis and synthesis, comparison, generalization were used. The categorical method "formal-logical definition of a concept" was also used to formulate a scientific definition of a voice message. Individual studies by domestic and foreign researchers focus on the study of certain aspects of pragmatics, socio- and psychological reasons for the use of voice messages. In this study, the author attempted to analyze these components more broadly, as well as the history of the development of voice messages, and defined this phenomenon in the paradigm of discursive phenomena, since a voice message is a vivid representation of our speech, immersed in life. The results of the study allowed us to conclude that the voice message belongs to a hybrid mode of discourse, which communicates asynchronously and contactlessly through an auditory channel, and at the same time has a high involvement of interlocutors in communication. The conclusions of this study are intended to contribute to a more productive work of linguists with categorical methods, as well as a more accurate and systematic description of the voice message.