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Now that we know how to determine the part of speech of a word in English, we look to begin evaluating the meaning of those words.
Sometimes meaning is simple and straightforward - we call that the denotation of a word. It's what the word means when we look it up in the dictionary; the explicit meaning of the word.
Some words, in addition to having a denotation, have a connotation - an implied meaning. The important thing to remember about connotation is that it changes based on what is being communicated.
Watch the short video from Khan Academy about connotation.
While all words have denotations, the same cannot be said when it comes to connotations. In order for a word to connote something, a word needs to have some kind of social overtone, cultural implication, or emotional association. Connotations tend to be more frequently responsible for miscommunications since their interpretation can depend on the social, cultural, and/or emotional backgrounds of each person in a conversation.
So, if a word's connotation isn't in the dictionary, how do I figure out what it is?
If English is your native language, here's some good news: you've been subconsciously interpreting connotations your whole life! How awesome is that?!
Unfortunately, that "subconsciously" part presents something of a challenge: because this is something you've always done without even realizing, it can be difficult to articulate how you've been doing it all along. That's okay, though, because the thesaurus is here to help.
Let's start by taking a look at the denotation (the dictionary definition) of "home": a shelter that is the usual residence of a person, family, or household
To get an idea of what the word's connotations are, let's take a look at some of its synonyms listed in the thesaurus:
Each of these words technically means the same thing as "home," but they all have slightly different meanings in one way or another.
So, what difference does it make?
I'm so glad you asked! Let's take a look at a few examples of songs that use the word home (there are tons!) and see if/how the meaning of those lyrics would change if we used a synonym for home.
Home and asylum are synonyms, so can't we just replace one for the other and keep the meaning of the song?
I hope you'll agree that our revised version of Edward Sharpe's "Home" has a very different meaning than the original. You may have a negative association with the word "asylum," since they are typically associated with the mentally ill. So in our revised version of the song, although the denotation of the words is the same, the revised version sounds like it should be sung by a patient in a treatment center.
Clearly there is more to a home than the usual residence aspect that is described in the dictionary. What makes "home" so different from all of its synonyms is its connotations. Connotations help us to pick out just the right words to use for just the right situations and in just the right contexts. Identifying connotations thus requires greater consideration of words and their implications.
1.04 Assessment:
Complete the 1.04 Connotation & Denotation - Part 1 work file and submit for grading.
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