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Reading and Writing Lesson 2

Definitions provide concise but exact meanings of unfamiliar words and explain special meanings for familiar words. There are two main methods for defining words - informal definition, which can be a denotation or connotation, and formal definition, which consists of three parts: the word, its genus or class, and its differentiae or distinguishing characteristics. Formal definitions are useful for explaining technical words or concepts precisely.

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281 views1 page

Reading and Writing Lesson 2

Definitions provide concise but exact meanings of unfamiliar words and explain special meanings for familiar words. There are two main methods for defining words - informal definition, which can be a denotation or connotation, and formal definition, which consists of three parts: the word, its genus or class, and its differentiae or distinguishing characteristics. Formal definitions are useful for explaining technical words or concepts precisely.

Uploaded by

Joshua Lander Soquita Cadayona
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Reading and Writing

LESSON 3
DEFINITION

Definitions provide concise but exact meanings of unfamiliar words and explain
special meanings for familiar words. They are often used to explain technical words and concepts. What to
define always depends on the needs of the reader and the purpose of communication. It can be done in either
of the two distinct methods of definition.

First, informal definition as either denotation or connotation. Denotation is the


dictionary meaning of the word. For example: Rose is a family of prickly shrub with pinnate leaves and
showy flowers. Meanwhile, connotation is the secondary meaning of a word and not necessarily included in
the dictionary. Rather it is how a writer understands a word based on their own personal or consensual
experiences. In the example: A dozen of pink roses is usually given to their beloved ones. Instead of literally
referring to flowers, love and romance are connoted.

Second, formal definition consists of three principal parts: the species (WORD) n
+Genus (CLASS) + Differentiae. The WORD is the name of the object, process, or concept defined. This is
usually followed by “is” and “are” and the CLASS or general group to which the objects belongs. For
example: Skimming (species) is a reading technique (class) of allowing the eyes to travel over a page very
quickly, stopping only here and there to gain an idea (differentiae).

For the expanded or extended definition, the following are common methods used inparagraph
development would be of great help (Filomena T. Dayagabil, Ethel L. Abao,and Remedios C. Bacus,
Critical reading and writing for Senior High School. QuezonCity: Lorimar Publishing, 2016, 43:

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