Transcription
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
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- [met-uh-fawr, -fer]
- /ˈmɛt əˌfɔr, -fər/
- /ˈmet.ə.fɔːr/
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- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
-
- [met-uh-fawr, -fer]
- /ˈmɛt əˌfɔr, -fər/
Definitions of metaphor word
- noun metaphor 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). 1
- noun metaphor something used, or regarded as being used, to represent something else; emblem; symbol. 1
- noun metaphor A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. 1
- noun metaphor literary device: allegory 1
- noun metaphor symbol, sth representative 1
- variable noun metaphor A metaphor is an imaginative way of describing something by referring to something else which is the same in a particular way. For example, if you want to say that someone is very shy and frightened of things, you might say that they are a mouse. 0
Information block about the term
Origin of metaphor
First appearance:
before 1525 One of the 28% oldest English words
1525-35; < Latin metaphora < Greek metaphorá a transfer, akin to metaphérein to transfer. See meta-, -phore
Historical Comparancy
Parts of speech for Metaphor
noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
metaphor popularity
A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 86% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".
metaphor usage trend in Literature
This diagram is provided by Google Ngram ViewerSynonyms for metaphor
noun metaphor
- symbol — something used for or regarded as representing something else; a material object representing something, often something immaterial; emblem, token, or sign.
- image — a physical likeness or representation of a person, animal, or thing, photographed, painted, sculptured, or otherwise made visible.
- analogy — If you make or draw an analogy between two things, you show that they are similar in some way.
- similitude — likeness; resemblance: a similitude of habits.
- personification — the attribution of human nature or character to animals, inanimate objects, or abstract notions, especially as a rhetorical figure.
Top questions with metaphor
- what is a metaphor?
- what does metaphor mean?
- what is metaphor?
- what is an extended metaphor?
- what is the definition of metaphor?
- what is a dead metaphor?
- how is a simile different from a metaphor?
- what is an implied metaphor?
- what is a mixed metaphor?
- what is a metaphor example?
- what us a metaphor?
- what is a metaphor worksheet?
- personification metaphor and simile are forms of which of these?
- what does a metaphor mean?
- which one of the following statements contains a metaphor?
See also
Matching words
- Words starting with m
- Words starting with me
- Words starting with met
- Words starting with meta
- Words starting with metap
- Words starting with metaph
- Words starting with metapho
- Words starting with metaphor