figuratively

adverb

fig·​u·​ra·​tive·​ly ˈfi-g(y)ə-rə-tiv-lē 

: in a figurative way: such as

a

: with a meaning that is metaphorical rather than literal

Speaking of panic, I recently ran into (figuratively, not literally) a friend who was ranting about giant "bees" digging holes in his lawn.

—Ron Kujawski

Poor small-town America. During the last gasps of this fevered election, pollsters, zealous campaign foot soldiers and reporters are kicking down its doors, figuratively speaking …

—Doug Colligan

b

: in a way intended to represent the form or figure of something or someone having objective reality : in a way that is not purely abstract

Franz Kline, who had always painted figuratively, made his breakthrough in 1949 when he looked at one of his sketches in a Bell-Opticon magnifier, and saw the rough, thrusting horizontals and verticals that became the basis of his new abstract style.

—Calvin Tomkins

Examples of figuratively in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Eagles keep figuratively punching Washington in the mouth. —David Aldridge, New York Times, 21 Dec. 2025

For most of the last century and plenty of this one, bowl games were literally and figuratively the coin of the realm in college football. —Kansas City Star, 18 Dec. 2025

Two rides stand above the rest at Tivoli, literally and figuratively. —Tamara Shopsin, Travel + Leisure, 16 Dec. 2025

The fog has cleared — both literally and figuratively — for the residents of Derry, Maine. —Christopher Rudolph, PEOPLE, 15 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above