How do you read the feeling a word carries, its connotation, and recognize when a word is used figuratively rather than literally?
Denotation, connotation, and figurative meaning: distinguishing a word's literal definition (denotation) from the feeling it carries (connotation), explaining how connotation shapes tone and an author's purpose, and recognizing and interpreting figurative (non-literal) word use, on a TNReady English I or II passage.
How to analyze connotation and figurative meaning on a TNReady English I or II passage: telling denotation from connotation, explaining how connotation shapes tone and purpose, and recognizing figurative versus literal word use. Connotation is a key clue to an author's attitude.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
Have a quick question? Jump to the Q&A page
Jump to a section
What this skill is asking
A word has a denotation (its literal dictionary meaning) and often a connotation (the feeling or association it carries), and it can be used figuratively (to mean something other than its literal sense). TNReady English I and II language items test all three: distinguishing denotation from connotation, explaining how connotation shapes tone and an author's purpose, and recognizing and interpreting figurative word use. The items appear as multiple choice ("thrifty and stingy differ in...") and two-point responses about a word's effect. This skill is the bridge between vocabulary and analysis: it explains why an author chose one word over a near-synonym, and that choice is often the key to attitude and tone. The transferable skill is reading words for their feeling and their figurative reach, not just their definition.
Denotation versus connotation
Near-synonyms rarely feel the same, and that difference is connotation.
When a question gives you a pair of near-synonyms or asks why an author chose a particular word, the answer usually turns on connotation. Ask whether the word is approving, disapproving, or neutral, and what that reveals. This is the same insight that drives author's purpose and craft: loaded words signal a persuasive aim, and the direction of the loading (positive or negative) signals the stance.
Figurative versus literal meaning
This skill overlaps with figurative language in the literary module, but here the focus is on the word level, the precise effect of a single word's connotation or figurative use. It also feeds your writing: choosing words for their connotation and using figurative language deliberately strengthens the Conventions and Clarity dimension of the writing rubric.
Reading connotation and figurative meaning on a passage
Try this
Q1. What is the difference between denotation and connotation? [Recall]
- Cue. Denotation is a word's literal dictionary meaning; connotation is the feeling or association it carries (positive, negative, or neutral). Near-synonyms can share a denotation but differ sharply in connotation.
Q2. An author calls a crowd "a mob" rather than "a gathering". What does the word choice suggest? [Short explanation]
- Cue. "Mob" carries a negative connotation of disorder and threat, while "gathering" is neutral. Choosing "mob" suggests the author views the crowd as unruly or dangerous, revealing a critical or fearful attitude toward it.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of TDOE exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
TNReady English I (language)1 marksTwo words can describe the same person: 'thrifty' and 'stingy'. Both denote someone careful with money, but they differ in: (1) denotation; (2) connotation, thrifty is positive while stingy is negative; (3) spelling only; (4) part of speech.Show worked answer →
Answer: (2). Thrifty and stingy share a denotation (careful with money) but differ in connotation: thrifty carries approval (sensible, prudent), while stingy carries disapproval (mean, ungenerous). An author's choice between them reveals an attitude.
Why not the others: (1) the denotation is essentially the same; (3) and (4) miss the point. Connotation is the feeling a word carries beyond its dictionary meaning, and it is a strong clue to tone.
TNReady English II (language)2 marksAn author describes a politician's speech as 'a flood of empty promises'. Explain whether 'flood' is literal or figurative here, and what the word choice suggests. (2-point response.)Show worked answer →
"Flood" is figurative: the promises are not literally water, so the word is a metaphor for an overwhelming quantity. The choice suggests the promises were excessive and, paired with "empty", insincere, conveying the author's critical attitude.
A strong answer identifies the figurative use (a metaphor, not a literal flood) and explains the effect (overwhelming amount, plus a negative judgement reinforced by "empty"). Treating "flood" literally, or naming it figurative without explaining the suggestion, earns only part of the credit.
Related dot points
- Vocabulary in context: determining the meaning of an unfamiliar or multiple-meaning word from context clues (definition, synonym, antonym, example, and inference clues), and confirming the meaning by substitution, on a TNReady English I or II passage.
How to determine word meaning from context on a TNReady English I or II passage: using definition, synonym, antonym, example, and inference clues, handling multiple-meaning words, and confirming a meaning by substitution. The most common vocabulary item type on the EOC.
- Word parts: using roots, prefixes, and suffixes to determine or confirm the meaning of unfamiliar words, recognizing how a prefix or suffix changes meaning or part of speech, and combining word-part analysis with context, on a TNReady English I or II passage.
How to use word parts on a TNReady English I or II passage: roots, prefixes, and suffixes to determine or confirm word meaning, recognizing how affixes change meaning or part of speech, and combining word-part analysis with context clues for unfamiliar words.
- Figurative language and literary devices: identifying simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, imagery, symbolism, and tone, and explaining the effect each creates and how it contributes to meaning, on a TNReady English I or II literary or poetic passage.
How to analyze figurative language and literary devices on a TNReady English I or II passage: identifying simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, imagery, symbolism, and tone, and (the higher-order skill) explaining the effect each creates and how it shapes meaning.
- Author's purpose and craft: identifying an author's purpose (to inform, persuade, explain, or describe) and point of view, and analyzing craft choices such as word choice, tone, rhetorical appeals (ethos, pathos, logos), and rhetorical questions, and how each serves the purpose, on a TNReady English I or II informational passage.
How to analyze author's purpose and craft on a TNReady English I or II informational passage: identifying purpose and point of view, and the craft choices (word choice, tone, rhetorical appeals ethos/pathos/logos, rhetorical questions) and how each serves the purpose. The marks come from the why.
- Word choice and precision: revising a draft to choose precise, appropriate words, replacing vague or general wording with specific terms, cutting wordiness and redundancy, matching word choice to a formal academic tone, and fixing commonly confused words, on a TNReady English I or II revising item, and in the essay.
How to revise word choice on a TNReady English I or II item: replacing vague wording with precise terms, cutting wordiness and redundancy, matching a formal academic tone, and fixing confused words. Precise word choice supports the writing rubric's Conventions and Clarity dimension.
Sources & how we know this
- TCAP English Language Arts — TDOE (2025)
- Tennessee Academic Standards for English Language Arts — TDOE (2025)