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metaphor

[ met-uh-fawr, -fer ]

/ ˈmɛt əˌfɔr, -fər /

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See synonyms for: metaphor / metaphors / metaphorical / metaphoric on Thesaurus.com

noun

a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance, as in “A mighty fortress is our God.”Compare mixed metaphor, simile (def. 1).

something used, or regarded as being used, to represent something else; emblem; symbol.

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This Or That: Simile vs. Metaphor

Simile vs. metaphor ... it’s the age-old question that none of us can keep straight. So, let’s try looking at it a different way ...

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Origin of metaphor

First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin metaphora, from Greek metaphorá “a transfer,” akin to metaphérein “to transfer”; see meta-, -phore

OTHER WORDS FROM metaphor

met·a·phor·i·cal

[met-uh-fawr-i-kuhl, -for-], /ˌmɛt əˈfɔr ɪ kəl, -ˈfɒr-/, met·a·phor·ic, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH metaphor

metaphor , simile

Words nearby metaphor

metapelet, metaph., metaphase, metaphase plate, Metaphen, metaphor, metaphorical, metaphorically, metaphosphate, metaphosphoric acid, metaphrase

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use metaphor in a sentence

André Kostolany, the 20th Century stock market whiz, had a great metaphor for the markets that dog owners might appreciate.
Already down 13%, Big Tech stocks have plenty more room to fall, analysts say|Bernhard Warner|September 22, 2020|Fortune
It was about persevering in the face of hardship, with contrasting harmonies and melodies acting as metaphors for life and death.
Beethoven’s 5th Symphony is a lesson in finding hope in adversity|Charlie Harding|September 11, 2020|Vox
In April 2014, President Xi Jinping used tea and beer as metaphors to underscore friendship with Belgium, during a visit to that country.
The Rise of China’s Tea Diplomacy|Pallabi Munsi|September 9, 2020|Ozy
I just think it happened to come along at exactly the moment that people were interested in that metaphor and exploring it.
What Was Malcolm Gladwell’s Tipping Point?|Pallabi Munsi|August 11, 2020|Ozy

But, Begley says, it may be time to trade in the hard-wired metaphor for a less misleading one.
5 Psychology Terms You’re Probably Misusing (Ep. 334 Rebroadcast)|Stephen J. Dubner|January 9, 2020|Freakonomics
Once again he accused the West of being unfair to Russia, bringing back his favorite metaphor, the Russian bear.
After His Disastrous Annual Press Conference, Putin Needs A Hug|Anna Nemtsova|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The original metaphor was: erect a wall to keep the garden of the church free from the wilderness of politics.
Dear Evangelicals: You’re Being Had|Jay Michaelson|November 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The scene must be a metaphor for sex, because really who does any of this?
Taylor Swift’s ‘Blank Space’: Hell Hath No Fury Like A Tay-Tay Scorned|Sujay Kumar|November 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Lepore has a different, though still linear, metaphor for the history of feminism: “a river, wending.”
Wonder Woman’s Creation Story Is Wilder Than You Could Ever Imagine|Tom Arnold-Forster|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
To wring all that can be wrung from metaphor, note what our elected and appointed officials are not dressed as.
Election Day Is Scarier Than Halloween|P. J. O’Rourke|November 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Your correspondent Erica gives us some quotations and epitaphs, in which the metaphor of an Inn is applied both to life and death.
Notes and Queries, Number 177, March 19, 1853|Various
"To say that the brute has awakened in a man is not a mere metaphor always," he went on presently.
Three More John Silence Stories|Algernon Blackwood
The musician not showing any visible appreciation of the managers metaphor, Perkins immediately proceeded to uncock his eye.
The Fifth String |John Philip Sousa
By a noble metaphor, says Milman, the day of their death was considered that of their birth to immortality.
The Catacombs of Rome|William Henry Withrow
To carry out your metaphor of the tree, the graft cut from the parent stock must bear fruit for itself.
Alone|Marion Harland

British Dictionary definitions for metaphor

metaphor

/ (ˈmɛtəfə, -ˌfɔː) /

noun

a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action that it does not literally denote in order to imply a resemblance, for example he is a lion in battleCompare simile

Derived forms of metaphor

metaphoric (ˌmɛtəˈfɒrɪk) or metaphorical, adjectivemetaphorically, adverbmetaphoricalness, noun

Word Origin for metaphor

C16: from Latin, from Greek metaphora, from metapherein to transfer, from meta- + pherein to bear

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for metaphor

metaphor

The comparison of one thing to another without the use of like or as: “A man is but a weak reed”; “The road was a ribbon of moonlight.” Metaphors are common in literature and expansive speech. (Compare simile.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.