Words Convey Two Kinds of Meaning, Not One

There is always more than one meaning of a word or a phrase. As all good writers know, terms convey two distinctly different kind of meanings simultaneously. These two kinds of meaning correspond to the intellectual-emotional duality in human thinking and behavior.
One is denotation, the cognitive meaning, and the second is connotation, the emotion or associational aspect of a term.

DENOTATION, also known as cognitive meaning, refers to the direct relationship between a term and the object, idea, or action it designates [the familiar "dictionary" meaning].

CONNOTATION, also known as affective meaning, refers to the emotive or associational aspect of a term [not available in dictionaries].
(McArthur, T. The Oxford Companion to the English Language. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992)

"Skill in using the emotional appeal of connotation is essential in any writing designed to persuade, convince, anger, inspire, or soothe a reader."-- McCrimmon, J.M. Writing with a Purpose. Cambridge, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1950.

Emotional Dictionary http://www.writing.ws/