The Meaning of Denotative: What It Is and How To Use It

Do you know the definition of denotative? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on the word denotative, including its definition, etymology, usage, example sentences, and more!

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What does the word denotative mean?

According to Collins English Dictionary and the American Heritage Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, the word denotative is an adjective that means explicit or overt. Denotative is four syllables – de-no-ta-tive, and the pronunciation of denotative is dɪˈnəʊtətɪv.

According to CSUN, the denotative meaning of words is distinct from the connotative meaning of words. Someone might use the word snake to denotatively describe scaly, legless, sometimes venomous reptiles having a long, tapering, cylindrical body and found in most tropical and temperate regions. Someone might connotatively use the word snake to describe something that is evil or dangerous. This is their denotation and connotation. This could also happen with the literal meaning of a word like expatriate, golden daffodils, fluttering physicality, a breeze, a red rose, brown cross, green stem, uprising, riot, clarity, mockingbird, and more. Ernest Hemingway, Harper Lee, William Wordsworth Jake Barnes and other authors use the connotation of words rather than the literal definition of a word to create powerful writing and specific language in a novel. Connotation is also used frequently in advertising, such as the red rose as a symbol of passion or a brown cross as a symbol of Christianity. In advertising, one should stick to the positive connotation of the meanings words rather than their negative connotations. There are a large set of meanings of a word in connotation, but in the process of denoting, only one direct meaning, explicit meaning, or particular meaning.

Many different languages also contain words that mean denotative. You may notice in this list of translations of denotative from Word Sense that several of these words look and sound a lot like one another. These are called cognates, which are often formed when two words in different languages have the same root or language of origin, but translations can also be found in a Spanish dictionary or German dictionary digital edition. 

  •  Spanish: explícito‎
  •  Persian: صریح‎ (sarih), واضح‎ (vâzeh)
  •  Arabic: صريح‎ (masc.)
  •  Romanian: explicit‎, clar‎
  •  Danish: tydelig‎, bestemt‎, udstrykkelig‎, eksplicit‎
  •  Bokmål: eksplisitt‎
  •  Japanese: 明確‎ (meikaku), 明白‎ (meihaku), 明らか‎ (akiraka)
  •  Swedish: uttrycklig‎, explicit‎
  •  Polish: szczegółowy‎, jasny‎, wprost‎
  •  Tagalog: lantad‎
  •  Portuguese: explícito‎ (masc.)
  •  Czech: výslovný‎ (masc.)
  •  Bulgarian: изричен‎
  •  Catalan: explícit‎
  •  Nynorsk: eksplisitt‎
  •  Greek: ρητός‎ (masc.), σαφής‎ (masc.) (f)
  •  Finnish: täsmällinen‎, selkeä‎, eksplisiittinen‎
  •  German: eindeutig‎, ausdrücklich‎, deutlich‎, explizit‎
  •  Russian: я́сный‎, чёткий‎
  •  Dutch: expliciet‎, uitdrukkelijk‎

What is the origin of the word denotative?

According to Etymonline, the word denotative has been used since the c17 and comes from the Latin denotat-, which is the past participle of dēnotāre.

What are synonyms and antonyms of denotative?

There are many different words that a person could use in place of the word denotative. These words are known as synonyms, which have the same definition as another word or phrase. Learning synonyms is a great way to expand your English language written or spoken English. This list of synonyms for the word denotative is provided by Power Thesaurus.

  •  denoting
  •  allegorical
  •  referent
  •  apocalyptic
  •  narrow
  •  symbolical
  •  expressed
  •  associational
  •  tropological
  •  armorial
  •  meaty
  •  marking
  •  inauspicious
  •  descriptive
  •  ideographic
  •  auspicious
  •  pregnant
  •  designatory
  •  figurative
  •  intelligible
  •  parabolic
  •  naming
  •  signalizing
  •  augural
  •  intensional
  •  pithy
  •  definite
  •  full of substance
  •  significative
  •  metaphorical
  •  identifying
  •  peculiar
  •  characteristic
  •  figural
  •  expressive
  •  emblematic
  •  pointing to
  •  denotational
  •  prescript
  •  demonstrative
  •  symbolic
  •  definable
  •  representative
  •  readable
  •  indicatory
  •  significant
  •  directive
  •  meaning
  •  exhibitive
  •  motivational
  •  evincive
  •  pointed
  •  explicit
  •  extended
  •  connotative
  •  ominous
  •  unrhetorical
  •  pathognomonic
  •  evidential
  •  signifying
  •  indicating
  •  referential
  •  exhibitory
  •  extensional
  •  illustrative
  •  semiotic
  •  suggestive
  •  full of meaning
  •  interpretable
  •  implicative
  •  indicative
  •  literal
  •  denominative
  •  typical
  •  representational
  •  allusive
  •  idiosyncratic
  •  designating
  •  revealing
  •  appellative
  •  referring
  •  lexical
  •  sententious
  •  pointing
  •  indicial
  •  connotational
  •  symptomatic
  •  designative
  •  meaningful
  •  iconic
  •  implying
  •  emblematical
  •  semantic
  •  revelatory
  •  denotive
  •  diagnostic
  •  metaphoric
  •  full of point
  •  show
  •  prognostic

There are also several different words that have the opposite meaning of the word paste. These opposite words are known as antonyms. Learning antonyms is another great way to expand your English language vocabulary quickly and easily. These antonyms of denotative are also provided by Power Thesaurus.

  •  denotive
  •  suggestive
  •  pregnant
  •  significative
  •  pointing to
  •  intelligible
  •  characteristic
  •  implying
  •  indirect
  •  redolent
  •  full of meaning
  •  impressionistic
  •  indicating
  •  implied
  •  signifying
  •  symbological
  •  diagnostic
  •  semantic
  •  meaningful
  •  meaning
  •  inexplicit
  •  evidential
  •  implicative
  •  hinting
  •  allegoric
  •  transferred
  •  apocalyptic
  •  prognostic
  •  extended
  •  idiosyncratic
  •  significatory
  •  denotative
  •  signalizing
  •  anagogical
  •  implicational
  •  significant
  •  definable
  •  evocative
  •  exhibitory
  •  semiotic
  •  symbolistic
  •  naming
  •  ominous
  •  allegorical
  •  designatory
  •  connotative of
  •  symbolic
  •  exhibitive
  •  metaphorical
  •  evincive
  •  indicatory
  •  illustrative
  •  symptomatic
  •  denotational
  •  indicative
  •  emblematic
  •  typical
  •  connotational
  •  extensional
  •  representative
  •  iconic
  •  interpretable
  •  augural
  •  associational
  •  substantial
  •  implicit
  •  allusive
  •  sententious
  •  ideographic
  •  identifying
  •  symptomatologic
  •  evocatory
  •  intensional
  •  betokening
  •  full of point
  •  auspicious
  •  pathognomonic
  •  full of substance
  •  pithy
  •  testatory
  •  inferential
  •  symbolical
  •  readable
  •  figural
  •  armorial
  •  inauspicious
  •  designative
  •  pointed
  •  denominative
  •  demonstrative
  •  reminiscent
  •  figurative
  •  peculiar
  •  expressive
  •  testimonial
  •  meaty
  •  suggesting
  •  indicial
  •  referential
  •  connotative
  •  referring

How can the word denotative be used in a sentence?

The word denotative can be used in many different ways in the English language. Using words in a sentence is a great way to remember their definitions and add them to your everyday vocabulary. To learn new words you could also try making flashcards or quizzes to test your knowledge of different definitions. Try to use this word of the day in a sentence today! You never know, it could become a new favorite word. 

Kristeva’s obscene language was denotative of her anger, but connotative of someone who grew up not being able to swear. 

At Princeton University, the professor taught the difference between the connotative and denotative meaning of words.

Overall, the word denotative means the specific meaning of a word that a learner might find in America’s largest dictionary. This is different from the meanings of words connotatively, in which their class of objects are determined by feeling. This word is great for systematic vocabulary improvement.

Sources:

  1. Denotative definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary
  2. denotative: meaning, translation, anagrams  | Word Sense
  3. Denotative synonyms – 202 Words and Phrases for Denotative | Power Thesaurus 
  4. denotative | Origin and meaning of denotative | Online Etymology Dictionary 
  5. Denotative antonyms – 23 Opposites of Denotative | Power Thesaurus