Verbal Communication

K E Y T A K E A W A Y S
• The triangle of meaning is a model of communication that indicates the
relationship among a thought, symbol, and referent, and highlights the
indirect relationship between the symbol and the referent. The model
explains how for any given symbol there can be many different
referents, which can lead to misunderstanding.
•
Denotation
refers to the agreed on or dictionary definition of a word.
Connotation
refers to definitions that are based on emotion- or
experience-based associations people have with a word.
• The rules of language help make it learnable and usable. Although the
rules limit some of the uses of language, they still allow for the
possibility of creativity and play.
• Language acquisition refers to the process by which we learn to
understand, produce, and use words to communicate within a given
language group. This process happens at an amazing speed during the
first two years of life, and we attain all the linguistic information we
need to participate in everyday conversations, assuming normal
development, by our early teens.
E X E R C I S E S
1. Trace the history of a word (its etymology) like we did with
calculate
earlier in the chapter. Discuss how the meaning of the word (the
symbol) has changed as it has gotten further from its original meaning.
Two interesting words to trace are
hazard
and
phony
.
2. Apply the triangle of meaning to a recent message exchange you had in
which differing referents led to misunderstanding. What could you have
done to help prevent or correct the misunderstanding?
3. Think of some words that have strong connotations for you. How does
your connotation differ from the denotation? How might your
connotation differ from another person’s?
Chapter 3 Verbal Communication
3.1 Language and Meaning
133

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