The article is focused on the illocutive function of speech utterance as its genre identification criterion. Various approaches to the problem of genre identity are characterized briefly. The emphasis is put on polyintentionality of the communication unit, complexity and multidimensionality of its genre form. Considering M. M. Bakhtin’s ideas, illocution is described as normative (for a subject) initial direction of the speech design development. According to authors’ hypothesis, regular actualization of the set of illocutive elements (A.