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Literary notes about connotation (AI summary)

In literature, the word “connotation” is employed to highlight the layered meanings that go beyond a term’s literal definition. It often encapsulates the emotional, ethical, or contextual associations that words carry—for instance, a word might be used in one setting with an uncertain or nuanced secondary meaning [1] and in another with a distinctly negative moral tint [2]. In certain discussions, authors contrast its fixed and unequivocal application with the flexible, context-dependent implications that words can acquire over time [3], [4]. Moreover, some writers note that when the evident connotation is too strong, it is left unsaid, relying on the reader’s familiarity with the implied sentiment [5], while others explore how additional qualities—such as elegance or inferiority—are subtly embedded within a term’s connotation [6].
  1. (5) "Otter" translates here M.H.G. "ludem", whose exact connotation is not known.
    — from The Nibelungenlied
  2. An incorrigible is a terrible human being—at least such is the connotation of “incorrigible” in prison psychology.
    — from The Jacket (The Star-Rover) by Jack London
  3. [ 4 ] Speaking technically, it is a word with a positive denotation, but a connotation that is negative.
    — from The Will to Believe, and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy by William James
  4. Refined people are careful to avoid the use even of the word “servant,” replacing it by “maid,” so strong is this connotation of inferiority.
    — from Household Administration, Its Place in the Higher Education of Women
  5. It is a characteristic of this style that if a connotation is obvious it should not be explicitly stated.
    — from The Kitáb-i-Aqdas by Bahá'u'lláh
  6. Carries the additional connotation of elegance in addition to just careful attention to detail.
    — from The Jargon File, Version 2.9.10, 01 Jul 1992

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