WHAT IS CONNOTATIVE LANGUAGE? 30 EXAMPLES - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The connotative language is one that is used symbolically and figuratively to communicate information, sensations or feelings. That is, it conveys more than the literal meaning of the words or message. For example, with the phrase "he has silky skin" we are using connotative language, meaning that someone has smooth skin.

To connote means to suggest. Connotative language suggests through the possibilities and ambiguities of language. It is not only found in literary language, but its use is also applied to colloquial language.

It is the opposite of denoting language, which is used to express reality as it is. Denotative language is that used to provide information. However, through connotative language, emotions can be expressed through a subjective way. It is used poetically to make comparisons.

Characteristics of connotative language

Connotative language is characterized because it always depends on the context. Each word can contain several senses. We can include it in the emotional function of language, since the main motivation is to show the appearance or feeling of a situation or object. This is why it is not used in official or formal texts.

Connotative language also has a personal and geographical character. There are groups of people who attribute the same connotative meaning to a word, either because of common experiences or because of a characteristic of a common region.

In literary figures, many examples of connotative language can be found. However, the most common examples of connotative language are popular sayings and sayings used in colloquial language.

Examples of connotative language

1- His heart was broken when he heard the news

In this sentence, through connotative language, he suggests that it caused him great sentimental pain. The verb break is used allegorically to evoke the pain produced.

2- His face was porcelain

In this example, porcelain evokes something smooth and without impurities, and allows an image of what the face was like without any imperfections.

3- His skin is silk

As in the previous example, here the silk evokes a feeling of softness. In this sentence this softness is applied to the skin.

4- Hard like jelly

In this irony, the hardness of gelatin, which is almost non-existent, is evoked to explain the fragility of a person. Depending on the context in which it is used, it can be a physical or psychological frailty.

5- Will of steel

Through language, the hardness of steel is evoked to express the will and commitment of that person to a task.

6- Get the batteries there is a lot of work to do

It refers to the energy that batteries have to start certain objects. It evokes the energy that the batteries give to the energy that the respondent needs to start the work.

7- That movie gave me goose bumps

It refers to the phenomenon that happens in the skin when something scares you. This is because when the hairs stand on end, a phenomenon with a slight resemblance to the skin of a hen that is full of pimples occurs.

8- If you continue down that path, sooner or later you will find the last of your shoe

This phrase conveys that if the person questioned continues to perform perverse actions, there will come a point where he finds another who does the same to him. It alludes to the last of the shoes that are what give it shape.

9- Let's shake the skeleton all night

The skeleton cannot be shaken as such. In this case, the expression "shaking the skeleton" refers to the action of dancing.

10- The stars of your eyes illuminate my soul

The eyes alone have no shine, but by suggesting that the eyes are stars, it is intended to evoke a sense of admiration and love.

Other known examples of connotative language

• The coldness of not looking to hide.
• A bird in hand is better than a hundred flying.
• The new moon is the smile of heaven.
• My head is going to explode from the hangover.
• He received a spoonful of his own medicine.
• Maria goes crazy when she sees a clothing store.
• The neighbors look like parrots talking all day.
• This kid is going to make me gray hair.
• That news seems to me to be scared and jump.
• The devil knows more as an old man than as a devil.
• The dingy pond next to the mansion seemed to contain the horror of that house.
• He has lived a life of dogs since he left his job.
• He handled people in such a way that they did what he wanted.
• Don't piss me off.
• The measure is by the eye of a good cuber.
• The vultures of my uncles came to see what they were taking after my grandmother's death.
• It is a cowardly mouse, it always hides when it comes to work.
• The sparkle in his eyes was life.
• His face looked like a poem.
• Do the words are gone with the wind.
• The look of that woman makes me feel in the clouds.
• There is no crying over spilled milk.
• I feel like I am melting in the heat.
• His gaze was lacerating.
• His heart is made of gold.
• Plays an important role.
• They are a couple of lovebirds.
• He becomes a lion when he loses his team.
• His hand looked like a paddle.

References

1. GENETTE, Gérard. Poetic language, poetics of language. New Vision Editions, 1970.
2. DEL GESSO CABRERA, Ana María. Language and law. The legal discourse, a connoted discourse. Legal Critic Review, 1994, p. 71-83.
3. VERA-NORIEGA, José Ángel; PIMENTEL, Carlos Eduardo; DE ALBUQUERQUE, Francisco José Batista. Semantic networks: theoretical, technical, methodological and analytical aspects. Ra Ximhai, 2005, vol. 1, no 3, p. 439-451.
4. Example of Connotative Words. Examplede.com magazine. Posted in May, 2013.
5. 10 examples of Denotation and Connotation. ARQHYS.com Magazine. Published 05, 2010.
6. MARTÍNEZ, Antonio Ferraz. The language of advertising. Arco books, 1993.
7. DUCROT, Oswald; TODOROV, Tzvetan. Encyclopedic Dictionary of Language Sciences. XXI century, 1995.