Question

Identify whether the word "childlike" has a negative or positive connotation when compared to "childish."

Answer 1

First know what connotation means. It means: refers to a meaning that is implied by a word apart from the thing which it describes explicitly. Words carry cultural and emotional associations or meanings in addition to their literal meanings or denotations. For instance, "Wall Street" literally means a street situated in Lower Manhattan but _____ it refers to "wealth" and "power" Positive and Negative ______ : Words may have positive or negative ______ that depend upon the social, cultural and personal experiences of individuals. For example, the words childish, childlike and youthful have the same denotation but different connotative meanings. Childish and childlike have a negative connotation as they refer to immature behavior of a person. Whereas, youthful implies that a person is lively and energetic.

It is positive

Answer 2

Answer: The word "childlike" has a positive connotation when compared to "childish".

Explanation: Words can have a positive or a negative connotation. A connotation is not explicitly stated since it is an idea or feeling simply suggested by a word. In that way, words with a positive connotation invoke good feelings, such as pleasure and love, while words with a negative connotation suggest negative feelings, such as evil or pain. The word "childlike", which is used to describe an adult as having some of the good qualities of a child, has a positive connotation since, unlike "childish", which implies that an adult acts as an immature person, "childlike" is not used to offend someone.