English Language Insights, 2, Loaded Words 1: definition and examples of different concepts expressed with negatvie, neutral and positive connotations
Michael D. Powers, Ph.D., USCCI
![Michael D. Powers, Ph.D., USCCI]()
Michael D. Powers, Ph.D., USCCI
US Certified Court Interpreter 1980 / Ph.D. Spanish Portuguese 1981 / 24 years university professor / Estimates: 12,000+ depositions, hearings, etc. / 850 trials / 3000 documents / Conference Interpreter 650 conferences
Loaded Words 1, English: definition and examples of different concepts expressed with negatvie, neutral and positive connotations
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Following is an interesting definition of “connotation” along with its explanation and examples of some that are positive, negative, or neutral. This first section is copied from: literaryterms.net
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“I. What is Connotation?
A connotation is a feeling or idea that a word has, in addition to its literal or main meaning (the denotation). Often, a series of words can have the same basic definitions, but completely different connotations—these are the emotions or meanings implied by a word, phrase, or thing.
For example, “This clothing is affordable!” versus “This clothing is cheap!” Here, “affordable” sounds much better than “cheap,” because the word cheap also implies low quality.
?II. Examples of Connotation
Connotation is an additional meaning for a word or phrase; thus, the examples are endless. As mentioned, many words will share the same literal meaning, but may?connote?different feelings or ideas. Below are several examples:
§? Stench, smell, aroma, scent, odor
§? Strong, tough, sturdy, hard
§? Proud, confident, arrogant, egotistical
§? Childish, childlike, young, youthful
§? Rich, loaded, privileged, wealthy, affluent
§? Broke, poor, impoverished
§? Frugal, economical, stingy, cheap
§? Tempting, attractive, interesting
§? Liar, storyteller, fibber
§? Independent, unfriendly, private, standoffish
Think of these words used in the similar conversations. For example, imagine the difference between describing someone as a “strong woman” or a “sturdy woman”: because of these words’ connotations, the first implies that she is strong emotionally, while the second implies that she is a sturdy physically. Now, apply these two terms to a table—a “strong table” and a “sturdy table” have essentially the same meaning.
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III. Types of Connotations
Most of the examples above can be categorized as having either positive, negative, or neutral connotation, or sometimes both positive and negative, depending on how they are used.
a. Positive
A word whose connotation implies positive emotions and associations. For example, “the aroma of my grandmother’s cooking” produces a positive association, because the word “aroma” implies that the smell is pleasing and inviting.
b. Negative
A word whose connotation implies negative emotions and associations. If we exchange the adjective “aroma” in the above sentence so that it now reads “the stench of my grandmother’s cooking,” the meaning changes completely. Though both “aroma” and “stench” mean smell, “stench” has a negative connotation; thus, the meal sounds much less appealing.
c. Neutral
A word whose connotation is neither positive nor negative. For example, when speaking about a pet, the word “dog” has a neutral connotation; but, the word “mutt” has a negative connotation, and the word “purebred” has a positive connotation.
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IV. Importance of Connotation
Most words have two meanings: a denotative (literal) meaning, and a connotative (implied) meaning. It is important to note that not all connotations are solely positive or solely negative—depending on how a word is used, it can connote different things. Thus it is one of the most critical things to consider when it comes to word choice, in both literature and everyday conversation. In fact, the feelings or meanings associated with words can be everything. Connotations set the?tone?when writing and speaking, and clarify one’s intentions —they can elicit certain emotions or reactions or help to provide distinct impressions of things. Conversely, choosing words with the wrong connotation can produce an undesired reaction or emotion and misrepresent one’s intentions.”
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