Mr. Smith’s Junk Shop
Mr. Smith’s Secondhand Store
Betty’s Beauty Parlor
Betty’s Hair Boutique
Sam’s Café
Sam’s Diner
Denotation – the literal dictionary definition
of a word
Connotation – the emotions and feelings
associated with a word
athlete
jock
car mechanic
sandwich maker
automotive technician
sandwich artist
A mild word or phrase substituted for a harsher word
The company was cutting jobs to save money.
The company was downsizing to save money.
I am unemployed at the moment.
I am between jobs at the moment.
A person who doesn’t do any work
Home
Dwelling
House
Drifters
Homeless
Displaced
Career
Job
Employment
For each numbered set below, write the individual word under the column which best
describes its connotation.
1. student, pupil, learner, scholar, apprentice
2. spinster, old maid, career woman, unmarried woman
3. arrogant, cocky, vain, egotistical, proud, confident
4. giggle, chuckle, laugh, guffaw, roar, snicker, cackle
5. plump, obese, heavyset, fat, paunchy, burly, overweight, roly-poly,
husky, portly, pudgy
6. cheap, tight, miserly, frugal, economical, careful, thrifty, stingy, budgetminded
7. insidious, clever, sly, astute, cunning, skillful, smooth
8. glum, sullen, withdrawn, silent
9. abridged, economical, concise, compressed, brief
10. steal, embezzle, burglarize, rob, holdup, snatch, grab, help oneself to
For each numbered set below, write the individual word under the column which best
describes its connotation.
1. mansion, shack, abode, dwelling, domicile, residence, house, home,
dump
2. spinster, old maid, unmarried woman, maiden lady, career woman
3. snooty, arrogant, conceited, cocky, vain, self-satisfied, egotistical,
proud, high-and mighty, overbearing, supercilious
4. titter, giggle, chuckle, laugh, guffaw, roar, snicker, cackle
5. plump, obese, heavyset, fat, paunchy, burly, overweight, roly-poly,
husky, portly, weighty, pudgy
6. cheap, tight, miserly, frugal, economical, careful, thrifty, pennypinching, budget-minded, penurious
7. shrewd, calculating, clever, sly, adroit, knowing, astute, cunning,
skillful, smooth,
8. glum, sullen, withdrawn, silent
9. laconic, terse, economical, concise, pointed, compressed, brief
10. steal, purloin, embezzle, filch, pilfer, burglarize, rob, holdup, snatch,
grab, help oneself to, appropriate.