Although many theoretical approaches to psychotherapy identify philosophical resources, less attention has been given to the philosophical grounding of therapy as a dialogical enterprise. The philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer, in particular, represent an underutilized resource in unpacking the linguistic identity of therapeutic engagement. Gadamer's notions of the hermeneutic ontology of language, the event as the site of understanding, and the finite, historical nature of understanding are reviewed and integrated to enrich perspectives on the talking of therapy. Implications for therapy goals, the participation of the psychotherapist in events of understanding, the distinctiveness of therapeutic dialogues, and the ongoing importance of talk therapy alongside developments in the physical sciences are discussed. The resulting argument constructs an ontological grounding for the linguistic nature of psychotherapy that conceptualizes its value in regard to its ability to facilitate participation in the very being of the interlocutors and the subject matter at hand.