To successfully function in society, an individual must not only be able to use language appropriate to a given situation but must also be able to understand the social language cues of others. This type of social language competence, also termed pragmatic language (used hereafter), includes linguistic (e.g. topic maintenance), paralinguistic (e.g. pausing), and extralinguistic (e.g. facial expression) aspects of communication. Pragmatic language also includes the skill of combining one's own social knowledge with contextual information to generate inferences about the true meaning of someone's utterance. These processes are impaired in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), including those diagnosed with high-functioning ASD. This session will describe the current state of research in adolescents and adults with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder. Participants will analyze pragmatic language knowledge and skills adolescents and adults need to be successful socially and in the workplace. Practical and evidence-based techniques for intervention and assessment will be provided.