The section I found the most interesting this week is
definitions and the different types. First, there are different types of
meanings. Denotative meaning is basically the dictionary definition. It gives
the characteristics of an object, being, or an event. Connotative meaning is
based on personal experiences or other associations. We can also define by
stereotyping which is labeling people based on the group that they “belong” to.
A stipulative definition is one that is given to a new term or a new
combination of old terms. The examples given by Boss are terms like skyscraper or
laptop. Stipulative terms usually come from slang or colloquial words. If it
becomes part of everyday language, then it could be a lexical or dictionary
definition. A lexical definition is “the commonly used dictionary definition”
to widen vocabulary and decrease vagueness. It is either right or wrong and is
not flexible like stipulative definitions. Precising definitions are definitions
used to reduce vagueness. There are two types of précising definitions:
theoretical definitions explain a term’s nature and operational definitions are
definitions with standard measures for use in data collection and
interpretation. Persuasive definitions are used to influence other people to
agree with our view. They often use emotive language.
Knowing the definitions and different definition types is very important in the world today. One definition can mean one thing, while another can be completely different. This can cause miscommunication and speech problems. Definition types can range from just common use, stereotyping, as well as personal experiences. All of these types of definitions are key to remember because they can tell us a lot about the way we communicate. Our word choice plays a huge part of our communication skills, and it is imperative that we know everything we are saying. If we were to just speak without knowing the full definitions, our arguments are not valid.
ReplyDeleteYour post is very informing. Before this chapter I did not know that there were all these different types of definitions. Today, there are so many stipulative definitions. Everything seems to have two meanings or mean something different that it used to be. Definitions of things seem to go beyond the actual dictionary definition. A lot of the two part words are now becoming one, such as “a lot” turning into “alot.” If a word is commonly spelled a certain way it becomes a stipulative definition, sort of like a slang version. A lot of old English professors are sticklers for stipulative definitions because they believe that words should stay spelled and true to their actual dictionary definitions.
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