Final answer:
The 'presence of blends' does not usually provide clues to a word's connotative meanings; whereas, etymology, context, and historical usage can offer such insights.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question is asking which of the given options does not usually provide clues to a word's connotative meaning. Connotative meanings are the ideas or feelings that words invoke in addition to their literal meanings (denotations). Clues to a word's connotative meanings can often be found in its etymology (origin and history), the context in which it is used (how it is used in a sentence or discourse), and its historic usage, which can show how the meaning and associated feelings have evolved over time. However, the presence of blends, which refers to the combination of parts of multiple words into a single new word, generally does not provide information about a word's connotative meanings. Blending focuses more on word formation rather than the implications or associations that might be tied to a word. Hence, we can conclude that 'presence of blends' as an answer choice does not typically offer clues to a word's connotative meanings.