Distinguish
Connotation and Denotation
Learning Target:
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they
are used in a text, including figurative and
connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific
word choices on meaning and tone.
Distinguish
Connotation and Denotation
Words have meanings.
These meanings are listed is a dictionary.
The denotations of a word are the word’s
dictionary meanings, or literal meanings.
For example, the words panic and dread
denote or mean literally “intense fear.”
Distinguish
Connotation and Denotation
Words also suggest feelings and ideas that go beyond
their dictionary meanings, or denotations.
The feelings, ideas, and other associations a word
brings to mind are called their connotations. The word
connote means “suggest or imply.”
Two words can have the same denotation but
different connotations. For example, dread connotes
or brings to mind a feeling of helplessness. Panic
connotes or suggests widespread confusion.
Test-Taking Tips
Word Choice
Remember that writers choose words
carefully.
Think about the feelings and associations a
word brings to mind. These can be as
important to understanding the text as the
word’s dictionary definition.
Writers choose their words carefully to create an
impression. Some words carry positive connotations,
while others carry negative connotations.
•Most of the people on the block thought the new neighbor was
pushy.
•Most of the people on the block thought the new neighbor was
assertive.
•Most of the people on the block thought the new neighbor was
aggressive.
•The words pushy, assertive, and aggressive are synonyms. However,
assertive stirs up positive feelings while pushy and aggressive stir up
negative ones.
In your R/W Hb, make this:
Positive (Connotation)
slender
Neutral (Denotation)
thin
Negative (Connotation)
skinny
Challenge: There are three words that share a denotation but two in
the set are connotative. See if you can figure this out.
Direct and outspoken
uncertain, non-committal
rebel
A kiss-up, brown-noser
In your R/W Hb, make this:
Positive (Connotation)
Neutral (Denotation)
Negative (Connotation)
slender
thin
skinny
thrifty
economical
cheapskate
In your R/W Hb, make this:
Positive (Connotation)
Neutral (Denotation)
Negative (Connotation)
slender
thin
skinny
thrifty
economical
cheapskate
loyal
faithful
sycophant
In your R/W Hb, make this:
Positive (Connotation)
Neutral (Denotation)
Negative (Connotation)
slender
thin
skinny
thrifty
economical
cheapskate
loyal
faithful
sycophant
discrete
cautious
secretive
In your R/W Hb, make this:
Positive (Connotation)
Neutral (Denotation)
Negative (Connotation)
slender
thin
skinny
thrifty
economical
cheapskate
loyal
faithful
sycophant
discrete
cautious
secretive
individualist
non-conformist
renegade
In your R/W Hb, make this:
Positive (Connotation)
Neutral (Denotation)
Negative (Connotation)
slender
thin
skinny
thrifty
economical
cheapskate
loyal
faithful
sycophant
discrete
cautious
secretive
individualist
non-conformist
renegade
assertive
forthright
aggressive
In your R/W Hb, make this:
Positive (Connotation)
Neutral (Denotation)
Negative (Connotation)
slender
thin
skinny
thrifty
economical
cheapskate
loyal
faithful
sycophant
discrete
cautious
secretive
individualist
non-conformist
renegade
assertive
forthright
aggressive
considering
undecided
equivocal
You Can't Write a Poem about McDonald's
Noon. Hunger is the only thing
her face brown as a bun.
singing in my belly.
Suddenly I understand cannibalism.
I walk through the blossoming cherry trees
As I reach for her,
on the library mall,
she breaks into pieces
past the young couples coupling,
wrapped neat and packaged for take-out.
by the crazy fanatic
I'm thinking, how amazing it is
screaming doom and salvation
to live in this country, how easy
at a sensation-hungry crowd,
it is to be filled.
to the Lake Street McDonald's.
We leave together, her warm aroma
It is crowded, the lines long and sluggish.
close at my side.
I wait in the greasy air.
I walk back.. through the cherry trees
All around me people are eating —
blossoming up into pies,
the sizzle of conversation,
the young couple frying in
the salty odor of sweat,
the hot, oily sun,
the warm flesh pressing out of
the crowd eating up the fanatic,
hip huggers and halter tops.
singing, my ear, my eye, my tongue
When I finally reach the cash register,
fat with the wonder
the counter girl is crisp as a pickle,
of this hungry world.
her fingers thin as french fries,
-Ronald Wallace