metaphorical

American

[met-uh-fawr-i-kuhl, -for-] / ˌmɛt əˈfɔr ɪ kəl, -ˈfɒr- /

Also metaphoric

adjective

involving, invoking, or intended to be taken as a metaphor, something used symbolically to represent something else, suggesting a comparison or resemblance.

Our foreign policy blunder has given the insurgents a metaphorical green light to engage in violent tactics in pursuit of their imperial ambitions.

Other Word Forms

hypermetaphoric adjective
hypermetaphorical adjective
metaphorically adverb
metaphoricalness noun
nonmetaphoric adjective
nonmetaphorical adjective
semimetaphoric adjective
semimetaphorical adjective
submetaphoric adjective
submetaphorical adjective

Etymology

Origin of metaphorical

First recorded in 1560–70; metaphor ( def. ) + -ical ( def. )

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.

The next time a pundit cites that as a positive factor, though, ask them what happens with cash when it runs onto the metaphorical field?

From The Wall Street Journal

He later apologized on X, claiming he had "badly used the expression... in a metaphorical way to mean 'fooling around'".

From BBC

If that sounds metaphorical, it’s meant to be.

From Los Angeles Times

The description says it is a metaphorical symbol used by the Akan people of Ghana to express “the importance of reaching back to knowledge gained in the past and bringing it into the present.”

From Los Angeles Times

It’s “a metaphorical escape from the Great Depression to an Edenic place where the rules of supply and demand do not apply.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023