Subscribe

6th grade · English Language Arts · Unit 2 of 17

Connotation & Tone

Word choice changes meaning

What your child practices

Words can share a dictionary meaning (denotation) but carry different feelings (connotation), like “cozy” and “cramped.” Students choose words for effect and identify a writer's tone.

New York State Learning Standards learning standard: 6R4; 6L5; 6L3 · connotation and tone

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Denotation is a word’s dictionary meaning. Connotation is the feeling it carries.
  2. Cozy and cramped both mean small, but cozy feels good and cramped feels bad.
  3. Tone is the writer’s attitude, shown by word choice: cheerful, angry, worried, playful.

Example: Which has the more positive connotation: “thrifty” or “stingy”? Both mean careful with money. Stingy sounds selfish. Thrifty sounds wise. Answer: thrifty

Connotation & Tone in New York

In the New York State Learning Standards, this is unit 2 of 17 in 6th grade English Language Arts, after Point of View and before Make Your Case.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: New York State Education Department (NYSED)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Sort each word: positive or negative connotation?

    Sort into: 😊 Positive · 😒 Negative

    • 🔤reckless
    • 🔤cozy
    • 🔤scrawny
    • 🔤aroma
    • 🔤home
    • 🔤pushy

  2. Question 2

    A reviewer wants readers to dislike a character. Which word fits best? “The hero was _____ and refused to listen to anyone's advice.”

    • cheerful
    • stubborn
    • determined

  3. Question 3

    Which sentence makes the room sound unpleasant?

    • The room was small and had one lamp.
    • The room was cramped and dim.
    • The room was cozy and softly lit.

  4. Question 4

    Which word has the most negative connotation?

    • unique
    • unusual
    • weird

  5. Question 5

    What is the tone of this message?

    Please be careful near the edge. The rocks are slippery, and the water is deeper than it looks.

    • cautious
    • bored
    • playful
    • furious

  6. Question 6

    “stroll” and “trudge” have the same denotation (dictionary meaning). What is it?

    • a smell
    • a building where people live
    • like a young person
    • to move along on foot

More 6th grade