Have a look at this extract: The men walked down the streets to the mine with their heads bent close to their chests. In groups of five or six they scurried on. It was impossible to recognize individuals from the small gaps between their caps, pulled down over their eyes, and the tightly bound scarves tied tightly over the bottom half of their faces.

Now answer this question: What was the weather like as the men walked to the mine?

You should have been able to work out that it was very cold and windy. You probably arrived at this answer because you associated hats pulled down and scarves with winter or cold weather at least. You know from personal experience people keep their heads down when walking against the wind and the author gave you another clue with the word "scurried" which suggests the men were hurrying to reach their destination.

To tackle this question you have used the skill of inferring. This is sometimes called 'reading between the lines'. Writers expect you to use this skill to get the most out of any piece of reading. So, to really understand a piece of reading you need to be like Sherlock Holmes and be a first class detective!

Inference can be used in several ways to help you respond fully to a piece of reading. You can infer a general fact or a precise piece of information. You can infer emotions and feelings of characters in passage. You can infer information about the author - his/her opinions, feelings, point of view.

To infer successfully you can: Work out answer from clues or references in the text. Work out answer from the connotations of words used in text. Match something in the text to your own understanding or experience or knowledge to come up with the correct answer.

Have a look at the following extract and questions and spot how the clues help you come up with the answer. "Rain lashed against the windows as Jane stamped up and down the room stopping only to check the time on the mantle clock every five minutes. Her book, bought with such enthusiasm the day before, was flung carelessly in the corner beside the abandoned picnic basket. Jane stamped her feet and began to repeat her earlier tedious complaints against nature. Emily merely smiled to herself and carried on reading the newspaper without as much as a nod of the head.”

Inferring information: What plans had Jane had for the day? HINT: the abandoned picnic basket

Inferring about a character: How would you describe Jane’s mood? HINT: unable to sit still, watching the clock, fed up with reading, complaining

Inferring about the author: What expression does the author use to suggest her disapproval of the main character’s behavior? HINT: a word with negative connotations is used to describe Jane’s behavior

Read the following passage and then answer the questions on the next slide: "Only those of an imposing stature were chosen to play football by the natural team leaders who emerged every playtime. My chore was to sit behind the goal at the river end of the field and retrieve any balls stupid enough to avoid the grasp of Tam Knight or "Spite" as he was referred to in whispers by most of the lower school. On occasion this meant removing my boots and socks - if I happened to be wearing any that day. This particular day the water was higher than usual and as I tried to reach the ball I slipped off the slimy rock on which I perched and plunged into the murky wetness. While this was bad enough, I stood up just in time to see my left boot float down the river and disappear under the bridge. The roars of laughter and finger pointing were nothing compared to what I would have to endure when I went home bootless!"

Make inferences to decide if the following statements are TRUE or FALSE: The narrator was quite small as a child. The narrator enjoyed helping out at playtime. Tam Knight was a popular boy. The narrator came from a wealthy family. The narrator enjoyed a happy childhood.

The dictionary definition. The additional meaning a word may carry.

Is there more to a word than how it is defined in the dictionary?

Yes, there is more. In fact, every word has at least two definitions: connotative and denotative So, what’s the difference?

The denotative definition is based on the________definition of a word. The connotative definition is the________________________ meaning of a word. literal figurative or emotional

Connotation  The emotional associations of a word or phrase, as opposed to its exact meaning.  “Greasy” has a denotation meaning slippery but also has a connotation when referring to a “greasy” person.

Denotation and Connotation

Denotation The strict dictionary meaning of a word

Connotation The emotional and imaginative association surrounding a word

Purpose of Words To label things I live in a house.

Purpose of Words To express a point of view You may live in a house, but we live in a home.

Point of View  Positive We bought inexpensive souvenirs at the amusement park.  Negative We bought cheap souvenirs at the amusement park.

Point of View: Positive  Everyone had a (smile, smirk) on his/her face on the ride home.  Everyone had a smile on his/her face on the way home.

Point of View: Negative I ate a (soggy,moist) sandwich. I ate a soggy sandwich

Positive? You Decide! averagemediocre spitsaliva childishchildlike antiqueold-fashioned

Context Clues Words or phrases that help the reader understand a difficult word

Using Context Clues  The parrot was able to (mimic, mock) human voices.  The parrot was able to mimic human voices.

Context Clues: You Decide! 1. The (odor, fragrance) of apple blossoms filled the entire valley. 2. A (swarm, bunch) of bees filled the air near the hive. 3. Tammy (delayed, hesitated) for a moment, then went on speaking.

The connotative meanings of a word exist together with the denotative meanings. The denotation of the word snake is “any of numerous scaly, legless, and sometimes venomous reptiles” The connotations for the word snake could include evil or danger.

Connotation  Positive We bought inexpensive souvenirs at the amusement park. I ate a moist sandwich. I am a bargain shopper.  Negative We bought cheap souvenirs at the amusement park. I ate a soggy sandwich. I am a cheapskate.

For more examples:  Check out:  a/literature/Terms/Connotation.html a/literature/Terms/Connotation.html  Scroll down and take the practice quiz!

Example  The word “gaze” has the following synonyms gape, stare, glare, peer, gloat  Gaze: ________________________________________________  Gape: ________________________________________________  Stare: ________________________________________________  Glare: ________________________________________________  Peer: _________________________________________________  Gloat: ________________________________________________

Activity  For this assignment you will need a dictionary and a thesaurus. Here are the steps to follow:  Look up two different words of your choice in the thesaurus.  Under each, locate four synonyms that you like.  Write down the denotation of the five words in the group (should be the same denotation for all five).  Give the connotation of each word in the group. (Each one should differ slightly.)

WORDS: fat, obese, plump, large, stout  DENOTATION: being overweight or too heavy for your size.  CONNOTATION:  fat: ▪ a greasy, flesh way, lack of self control  obese: ▪ clinical word, grossly overweight  plump: ▪ pleasantly overweight, a bit round and cute.  large: ▪ heavy, but also have a bigger frame than average; more flattering word than others  stout: ▪ bulky and strong, like a football lineman

Let’s use the word HOT The denotation (or dictionary definition – remember d in denotation = dictionary) of HOT is: having a temperature higher than that of a human body. However, when you say “Man! He/She is hot!”, are you saying “Man! He is having a temperature higher than that of a human body!”? No!! You are saying the CONNOTATION of HOT – which could mean a variety of things – man he/she is cute, attractive, beautiful, and many other meanings – those come from personal experiences and cultural meanings, etc.

Advanced Info Connotation is extremely significant in poetry, mainly because nuances of words provide shades of meaning. In poetry, words are chosen purposefully. Connotations are never ignored, but utilized to their full advantage. Similarly, words are chosen or discarded because of their sound (assonance and alliteration).

In Robert Frost’s poem, “Mending Wall,” two neighbors walk along a wall of loose stones that separates their properties. As they walk they pick up and replace stones that have fallen out of the wall but Frost thinks it’s unnecessary to repair the wall since they have no animals that could harm one another's properties. His neighbors responds in the last line of the poem saying “Good fences make good neighbors.”

The wall in this poem has both a denotative meaning and a connotative meaning. The wall is both a boundary (denotation) as well as a barrier that prevents Frost from getting to know his neighbor and prevents any communication or involvement with one another (connotation).

In the poem, “Autumn,” by Christopher Brennan, the poet describes many aspects of the autumn season using denotation and connotation. One line in the poem, “the silent woods brood over an anxious deep, and in the faded sorrow of the sun.”

The word silent is used here to describe the woods both literally as “making no sound or noise” as well as emotionally since the word silent helps us visualize the woods as “dull, peaceful, and tranquil.”

“The Sun Rising” is a famous poem by John Donne which uses the sun to demonstrate the relationship between denotation and connotation. “Busy old fool, unruly Sun, Why dost thou thus, Through windows, and through curtains, call on us?” The denotation of the sun in this poem is “the star that is the basis of the solar system,” which is the dictionary meaning of the word.

However, the sun also has a connotation meaning in the poem. The sun is used to represent time, the beginning and end of each day, and the figure that our lives revolve around. The connotation of the sun is the significance and meaning that the word has in the poem besides its literal meaning.

By Brian Lodato, Jim Dunleavy, and Pat Amice