Which of the following is a difference between connotative words and denotative words?



What is the difference between the denotative and connotative?






22 Answers

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2 years ago


Hi Jake

What is the distinction between connotation and denotation? Good guys sell short! Why selling short is good for the market! Both terms are about meaning, which falls in the realm of semantics. Denotation is just the precise definition of a word. Connotation refers to the variety of associations — perhaps “baggage” — that a word carries. Good dictionaries typically give a sense of both denotation and connotation.

A couple examples:

Rose is a certain type of flower coming in various colors, such as red. But a red rose also has the connotation of love, romance, etc. Sleep has the denotation of a state of (semi)unconscious rest. It can have connotations relating to death, being oblivious (“asleep at the wheel”), and so on. (Note that when animals are “put to sleep” that means they are euthanized and die; you could call this a euphemism, or you could say that sleep has expanded its denotations to literally mean death in that particular phrase.

You can think of denotation at the center of a word’s semantic (meaning) space, and connotation as a cloud of associations surrounding the denotation. The denotation of a word can change over time to expand into that “cloud of connotation” — or expand to formally adopt a former connotation as now being part of the denotation. For example, nurse (and its earlier forms) referred to women who were foster-mothers or wet nurses; eventually, the meaning expanded into nurse in the sense of a person caring for the sick or injured, but still carried the connotation of being a woman’s profession; at this time, nurses may be male or female, so the connotation is changing and has changed for many speakers of English.

Thus you can see that the boundaries between denotation and connotation are not carved in stone — they can and do change with usage and evolve over time. Also, connotation provides a springboard for metaphors, similes, symbolism, and so on.




Which of the following is a difference between connotative words and denotative words?

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2 years ago


Hi Jake Both words DENOTATIVE and CONNOTATIVE address meaning, but different types of meaning. I’ll give you a few definitions and examples to explain this. "Denotation" is explicit, as defined by the dictionary. There isn’t a lot of debate or nuance to it. "Connotation" is implicit, according to the context of usage. It is much more subjective, as it refers to the emotional and imaginative associations surrounding a word.




2 years ago


All words have a denotation and connotation. The denotation refers to the most basic or specific meaning of a word. In contrast, a connotation is an idea that is suggested by or associated with a word. Denotation is a translation of a sign to its meaning, precisely to its literal meaning, more or less like dictionaries try to define it. Connotation refers to the range of associated meanings that the word signifies, depending on the context




2 years ago


Connotation refers to the wide array of positive and negative associations that most words naturally carry with them, whereas denotation is the precise, literal definition of a word that might be found in a dictionary. Denotation refers to the specific object or concept that a word signifies Connotation refers to the additional meanings and moods one associates with it. Often, figures of speech play on metaphors. Connotation refers to the wide array of positive and negative associations that most words naturally carry with them.




2 years ago


SUMMARY 1.Denotation is the actual literal definition or meaning of a word or term. It is the dictionary definition. 2.Connotation is an association of a term. It can also be an emotional input attached to a word thus making it more figurative and suggestive. 3.Denotation gives a more limited yet descriptive definition of a term. 4.Connotation can have a variety of descriptions affected by mood, emotion, experience, and season, among other factors.




2 years ago


RULE? Here is a simple rule to help you to understand the difference. A denotation is…. (what it actually is) A connotation suggests…. (implied meaning)




2 years ago


SENTENCE EXAMPLES A SNAKE DENOTATIVE denotative definition for the word “snake” in the dictionary a long limbless reptile which has no eyelids, a short tail, and jaws that are capable of considerable extension. Some snakes have a venomous bite. any reptilian, long, tapering, and often venomous cylindrical animals found in temperate or in tropical areas that is characterized as being legless and scaly




2 years ago


A snake slithered across the grass. I recoiled in horror from the snake. The snake coiled around the branches of the tree. He was hollering something about seeing a snake. A small green snake slithered across the wet road. They kept whiskey to antidote themselves against snake bike.




2 years ago


She screamed when she saw a snake. He's terrified of being bitten by a snake. A snake slithered into the thick grass. The farmer cut at the snake with a stick. A snake was slithering silently towards us. The dog cringed at the sight of a snake.




2 years ago


The snake coiled up in the sunshine. The donkey bucked when it saw the snake. He killed the snake with his bare hands. The snake sheds its skin once a year. A snake coiled itself around the branch.




2 years ago


I mistook the stick for a snake. A snake is sizzling at us. A snake wormed on the wet ground. A snake winds around a branch. The snake slithered off into the undergrowth. The snake coiled up, ready to strike.




2 years ago


I had a frightening encounter with a poisonous snake. The snake lifted its head and hissed. The child was frightened by the snake. A snake slithered across our path. He was bitten by a poisonous snake.




2 years ago


CONNOTATIVE Implied, associated, emotional and imaginative meanings Connotative definition or meaning of the word “snake” A treacherous or deceitful person. Associating “danger” and “evil” with snakes is acceptable.




2 years ago


The lawyer snaked Tom out of nearly half his inheritance. He spent a lot of time snaking about that job. Nelly is nursing a snake in her bosom That’s snake oil Jack is a snake in the grass He’s lower than a snake's belly A bad conscience is a snake in one's heart.




2 years ago


MORE SENTENCES A ROSE DENOTATIVE A prickly bush or shrub that typically bears red, pink, yellow, or white fragrant flowers, native to north temperate regions and widely grown as an ornamental.




2 years ago


Rose buds are near the burst. The national emblem of England is a rose. He sent her a single red rose.




2 years ago


In a vase on the table stood a rose. He picked her a rose. I pricked my finger on a rose tree. I scratched my arm on a rose bush. The jacket has a rose motif on the collar.




2 years ago


A rose garden fronts the house. She had pricked her finger on a rose thorn. She found a rose tucked under the windscreen wiper of her car one morning. He sent me a rose once. Smithson had been a rose peddler in Portland.




2 years ago


CONNOTATIVE Implied, associated, emotional and imaginative meanings

The air is perfumed with the rose flowers. What is in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell and sweet. There is no rose without a thorn. She had the sweet sadness of a rose petal fluttering to the ground.




2 years ago


Beauty without virtue is a rose without fragrance. She blushed as red as a rose. Its nail was a rose thorn; she allowed it to scratch at her skin, making a faint red mark. Wish you happiness unfolding like the petal of a rose. The moment was eternity, trembling like a dewdrop on a rose, endlessly about to fall. A woman, reclining on a green chaise longue, wears a rose peignoir, its ostrich collar languorously open.




2 years ago


MORE EXAMPLES CHEAP: to cost very little Denotation: This shirt is cheap enough for me to afford. Connotation: That t-shirt was so cheap, it pilled in a matter of weeks. DABBLE: to show a superficial interest Denotation: I dabble in painting. Connotation: You should never dabble in drugs.




2 years ago


POUR: to flow freely or rain heavily Denotation: Do you want me to pour you a glass of water? Connotation: His work continued to pour in. WAVE: a swell of water Denotation: The wave crashes against the beach. Connotation: She grieved in waves of sadness.




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