Connotations
Connotation - the
emotional associations or links attached to a word.
Denotation – the
dictionary definition of the word.
The connotations with their denotation:
·
Girl - a female child, from birth to full growth.
·
Woman - the female human being, as distinguished from
a girl or a man.
·
Lady - a woman who is refined, polite, and well-spoken.
·
Female - denoting the sex that can bear offspring or
produce eggs.
Girl:
- Youth
- Female
- Innocence
Woman:
- More mature
- Slightly older ‘girl’
- Generalised term
Female:
- Extremely generalised term
- Seen as the same as ‘woman’
Lady:
- Posh
- Sophisticated
- High class
Laddette:
- Informal term
- Disorderly behaviour
- Seen as ‘cool’
- House
- Home
- Property
- Place
- Abode
House:
- Place you live
- Think of families
Home:
- Cosiness
- Family
- Permanent – home is yours
Property:
- Belongs to you – it is yours
- Possessions
Place:
- Very broad term
- Can bring back good and bad memories
Abode:
- Place you stay
- Basically where someone is living
Euphemisms
- To powder one’s nose – has two meanings, either:
- taking drugs
- It used to mean a while ago for women to go to the toilet.
The second example is an old
fashioned term yet still seen as good-mannered way of telling people you’re
going to the toilet. Seen as acceptable.
2. To spend a
penny – means: to go to the toilet.
This refers to the (former) use of
coin operated locks on public toilets. This euphemism would be used as it
sounds more formal and ladylike.
3. Gone to
meet his maker – means: someone has died.
This euphemism would have been used
because it softens the reality of death. It is not as harsh as saying someone
has died. The euphemism says that he has ‘gone to meet his maker’ which is
saying that he has gone to heaven where God (the maker) is.
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