metaphor (ˈmɛtəfə
;-ˌfɔː)
Definitions
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 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 battle Compare simile
Alternative Forms
metaphoric (ˌmɛtəˈfɒrɪk) ˌmetaˈphorical adjective ˌmetaˈphorically adverb ˌmetaˈphoricalness noun Word Origin
C16: from Latin, from Greek metaphora, from metapherein to transfer, from meta- + pherein to bearSynonyms
View thesaurus entryUsage examples
The computer became a model for the mind and a metaphor of the universe.
, The Broken God (1993)Vogel uses technology freely as a convenient metaphor for nature's way of doing things.
New Scientist (1998)Accordingly, the material is not ordered chronologically but follows a schema that plays on the title metaphor.
Globe and Mail (2003)All I see is a crazy metaphor about mankind's doomed aspirations to outsmart nature.
Times, Sunday Times (2001)The metaphor of the taxi cab occurred to me; a metaphor for a certain kind of male drifting loneliness.
, DE NIRO: A Biography (2002)