The lexical meaning is not homogeneous either, it consists of:
- denotational meaning (semes) - component of the lexical meaning that
makes communication possible; the basis of the lexical meaning is some no
tion;
- connotational meaning which is divided into emotive charge and stylis
tic reference. The emotive charge shows the amount of emotion which a word
possesses; it is one of the objective features proper to words as linguistic units
and it forms part of the connotational component of meaning. Emotive charge
is clearly seen in emotional words denoting different emotions and feelings,
e.g.: love, hatred, despair, joy, grief, etc.
Besides it can be seen in some groups of synonyms, e.g.: large, big, tremendous; like, love, worship; girl, girlie. There is difference in the emotive charge of the members of these sets.
The emotive charge varies in different parts of speech. In some of them, e.g. in interjections which all don't name anything but express feelings of a speaker, the emotive charge prevails, e.g.:
Alas! - the feeling of sadness,
gosh - the feeling of surprise,
ah, oh, dear me - a general feeling.
In conjunctions it practically does not exist.
Not all the words have emotive charge, e.g.: table, pen, window.
Emotive charge should not be confused with emotive implication which the words may get in speech. Unlike the emotive charge the emotive implication of the word largely depends on the individual experiences of the speaker. Subjective words devoid of any emotional element may possess in the case of individual speakers strong emotive implication, e.g.: a cigarette, exam, hospital, lexicology, football.