allegorical
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- allegorically adverb
- allegoricalness noun
- nonallegoric adjective
- nonallegorical adjective
- nonallegorically adverb
- semiallegoric adjective
- semiallegorical adjective
- semiallegorically adverb
- unallegorical adjective
- unallegorically adverb
Etymology
Origin of allegorical
First recorded in 1520–30; equivalent to Late Latin allēgoric(us) (from Greek allēgorikós; allegory, -ic ) + -al 1
Explanation
The story about the dog who sees his reflection in a lake, thinks it's another dog, then drops his bone in the water trying to snatch the reflected bone, is allegorical. Allegorical means containing a moral or hidden meaning. Allegorical stories and plays use concrete ideas as symbols for deeper or layered meanings. Folk tales and fables are often allegorical. Visual art, like paintings, can also be allegorical, with religious or even political messages symbolized by painted figures. The Greek word for allegory, allegoria, comes from allos, "another," and agoreuein, "speak openly. So if you speak of one thing, but mean something else, that's allegorical.
Vocabulary lists containing allegorical
Rhetorical Devices
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Rhetorical Devices
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A Brief History of Time
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But the novel’s true greatness lies in its prophetic allegorical power.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026
Yet Gilligan, who created “Breaking Bad” and cast Seehorn in the spinoff series “Better Call Saul,” has delivered a show filled with allegorical temptations.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 24, 2025
For Zigmont, the dog is not only an allegorical concern, but also a truly practical one.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 9, 2025
Even so, it is the freshness of allegorical audacity as a young genius looks ahead that has the most relevance.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2025
A less allegorical symbol may be found under Atlas and Justice, on the floor of the Town Hall.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
