denotative

Denotative refers to the literal or primary meaning of a word—the object, concept, or class to which the word refers. In linguistics and semiotics, denotation is the relation between a linguistic sign and its extension in the world: the set of all things that the sign denotes. This is contrasted with connotative meaning, the associations, emotions, or cultural meanings a word may evoke beyond its explicit reference.

Denotation provides the core reference for a term. For example, the denotation of the word dog is the domesticated canid Canis lupus familiaris and the broader class of animals that fit that description. The proper noun Mount Everest denotes that specific mountain located on the Nepal–Tibet border. In logic and semantics, the denotation of a predicate is the set of objects for which the predicate is true.

Dictionaries typically record denotative information as the primary sense of a word, while supplementary notes may describe connotations, register, or usage. Denotation can shift over time or across communities as language and the world change, but it tends to be more stable than connotation. Distinguishing denotation from connotation helps clarify analysis in fields such as semantics, lexicography, translation, and communication studies.

In practice, denotative meaning is concerned with reference and truth conditions, whereas connotative meaning deals with subjective associations. Together, they describe how language relates to reality and to human experience.