Denotation and Connotation
Objectives
Student will be able to:
define a word's denotative and connotative meanings.
recognize that words with similar denotations may carry different connotations, depending on context.
Introduction
Most words have more than one meaning. A word's literal meaning, or dictionary definition, is called its
denotation.
A word's secondary meaning, or the feelings it creates, is called its
connotation.
Words with similar denotations can have different connotations.
Exercises
Read each sentence. Identify whether the
underlined
word has a positive or negative connotation.
1.
The twins are
obsessed
with football. It's all they talk about.
a.
positive
b.
negative
b. negative
1
.
Correct
Incorrect
Not Assigned
2.
Nana warned, "Don't be so
selfish
. You need to remember that you are not the only person in this family."
a.
positive
b.
negative
b. negative
2
.
Correct
Incorrect
Not Assigned
Read the word pairs listed below. They have similar denotations, but they have different connotations. Circle the word that has a positive connotation. Then, use the word in a sentence.
3.
amusing absurd
Student responses may vary. Acceptable answers include:
I thought her speech was
amusing
.
Reggie told an
amusing
story about his trip.
3
.
Correct
Incorrect
Not Assigned
4.
bossy confident
Student responses may vary. Acceptable answers include:
Penny felt
confident
as she stepped into her new classroom.
Dina was
confident
in her test answers.
4
.
Correct
Incorrect
Not Assigned
5.
cheap inexpensive
Student responses may vary. Acceptable answers include:
Even though the furniture is high quality, it is
inexpensive
.
The tickets were
inexpensive
so we were all able to go to the concert.
5
.
Correct
Incorrect
Not Assigned
6.
cautious fearful
Student responses may vary. Acceptable answers include:
The children were
cautious
and looked both ways before crossing the street.
The trail was dangerous, but the hikers were
cautious.
6
.
Correct
Incorrect
Not Assigned