The study examines metamessages as non-explicit components of an utterance that influence the interpretation of professional discourse. Despite the active development of pragmalinguistics, the role of metamessages in professional discourse remains insufficiently explored, which complicates their distinction from other types of non-explicit elements in an utterance. The aim of the study was to identify the functions of metamessages and to determine the rhetorical devices through which these functions are realised. The material consisted of a corpus of 152 texts from South African business media published between 2021 and 2024. A total of 427 metamessages were manually annotated and classified into four functions: manipulative, evaluative, regulative, and appellative. Quantitative analysis showed a clear dominance of the manipulative function. The predominance of the manipulative function of metamessages is explained by the structural closeness of manipulation to the very essence of the metamessage, which secretly directs the interpretation while maintaining external neutrality. Qualitative analysis made it possible to identify four rhetorical devices used to realise the functions of metamessages: metaphor, euphemism, personification, and antithesis. Each of the identified devices contributes to the realisation of all four functions. The findings refine the theoretical status of the metamessage and demonstrate its relevance for the analysis of professional discourse.