metaphors
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əˌfɔr, -fər noun
1.
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 ).
2.
something used, or regarded as being used, to represent something else; emblem; symbol.
Origin:
1525–35; < Latin metaphora < Greek metaphorá a transfer, akin to metaphérein to transfer. See meta-, -phore
1525–35; < Latin metaphora < Greek metaphorá a transfer, akin to metaphérein to transfer. See meta-, -phore
Related forms
met·a·phor·i·cal·ly, adverb
met·a·phor·i·cal·ness, noun
hy·per·met·a·phor·ic, adjective
hy·per·met·a·phor·i·cal, adjective
non·met·a·phor·ic, adjective
non·met·a·phor·i·cal, adjective
non·met·a·phor·i·cal·ly, adverb
sem·i·met·a·phor·ic, adjective
sem·i·met·a·phor·i·cal, adjective
sem·i·met·a·phor·i·cal·ly, adverb
sub·met·a·phor·ic, adjective
sub·met·a·phor·i·cal, adjective
sub·met·a·phor·i·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To metaphors
00:10
Metaphors
is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
metaphor (ˈmɛtəfə, -ˌfɔː) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| Compare simile 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 | |
| [C16: from Latin, from Greek metaphora, from metapherein to transfer, from | |
| metaphoric | |
| —adj | |
| meta'phorical | |
| —adj | |
| meta'phorically | |
| —adv | |
| meta'phoricalness | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
metaphor
1530s, from M.Fr. metaphore, from L. metaphora, from Gk. metaphora "a transfer," especially of the sense of one word to a different word, lit. "a carrying over," from metapherein "transfer, carry over," from meta- "over, across" (see meta-) + pherein "to carry, bear" (see
infer). Related: Metaphoric; metaphorical; metaphorically.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
metaphor definition
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 American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Example sentences
Metaphors are often used in science to understand difficult and counterintuitive phenomena.
He has long been on record arguing that metaphors in science are misleading, and that they must be eliminated as science matures.
As for the home-grown tongue, of its umpteen sporting metaphors hardly any come from soccer.
In the world of quantum mechanics, clock metaphors and so forth seem a little out of place.
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