Denotationalism

Okay, so denotationalism is a really big word that means that things are defined by what they represent. Let's say I draw a picture of a dog. Even if it doesn't look exactly like a real dog, we still know what it is because it represents a dog. That's kind of like how denotationalism works - things are identified by what they symbolize or stand for. In the same way, words can represent things too. For example, when we say "apple," we know it stands for a round, red or green fruit that we can eat. Denotationalism helps us understand what things mean without having to see them or experience them directly.