This paper presents a method for enquiring into a distinction between two kinds of purposeful human action in design: pragmatic and epistemic actions. Although frequently mentioned in the literature, this distinction has not been empirically tested in the design context. To test the distinction, we conducted an empirical lab study with designers thinking-aloud during digital design processes. This study allowed us to collect and subsequently transcribe, parse, and code a set of design process protocols. Based on this protocol set, we tested the distinction between pragmatic and epistemic actions using protocol analysis and a linkographic notation that we extended for this purpose. Through this analysis, we found that pragmatic and epistemic actions are neither all-encompassing nor necessarily mutually exclusive. We thereby arrive at a more nuanced categorisation of purposeful human actions in design as well as an extended linkographic notation, with a potential for more general utility in empirical design research.