It must be the case that some cognitive processes enable language comprehension. How do they work and what can they tell us about language? In this talk I will explore the role of memory structures and mechanisms through the lens of verb-phrase ellipsis as it engages in situ retrieval of its antecedent from short-term memory. I will argue that evidence from the speed-accuracy tradeoff method and from eye-movements during reading support a particular structure of linguistic memory representations, as well as a direct-access retrieval mechanism that is vulnerable to factors known to affect general memory performance.