The OP states confidently in their question Why is “folks” commonly used as a gender-neutral term for “people” when “people” is already gender-neutral? The term folks, originally an Old English term used on both sides of the Atlantic, has not seen a recent surge in popularity because it is a better alternative to the gender neutral people, but because it sounds friendlier, and more ...
3 I have two related questions. Do each of these 4 words have negative connotation regarding intent? (E.g., rudeness, malice, inappropriateness, etc.) If so, is there a gradation (or scale) of rudeness or negative emotional connotation associated with each?
What is the difference between naïve and ignorant? I want to make sure I understand the proper meaning and connotation of each word. For example, how would you describe a person who makes inapprop...
As pointed out by @JanusBahsJacquet below, my examples above are all about the adverb and not the adjective. True, that is cheating. Of the adjectives, extraordinary is the one most often used for neutral or bad connotations while outstanding (in the sense mentioned in the OP) and exceptional are indeed almost always positive in the absence of qualifiers. Extraordinary on the other hand, is ...
However, the connotation can shift within a context. One can even say "He was in bed all day" with a negative tone, with just the verb be. Except, the question is asking for a verb that means 'relax' with negative connotations. Collins provides both neutral and negative connotations of the verb lounge in one definition:
The 'low quality' connotation is minimized when 'cheap' becomes the comparative adjective, 'cheaper'. It imparts some context that it is probably the price of two items you are comparing. However, because you are not stating clearly that it is the price that is cheap, it still conveys a the possibility of low quality.
What are the differences between trite, cliché, and passé? They seem to all have a similar denotation, but what are the subtleties of their connotations? The only difference I really see is that c...
This is basically the opposite of Is there a word to describe curiosity in a positive way? I'm not looking for an antonym. I'm looking for a synonym for inquisitive or curious that is more negative,
But that "definition" is one of many I found that is little more than a list of synonyms, and synonyms don't necessary imply connotation. Does colloquial use of "pseudo" inherently carry negative connotation? Or is it context-dependent like in academia? Colloquially, when used with certain nouns, a negative connotation is obvious.
