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

Heck, not even a little erectile dysfunction can get him down… figuratively speaking. —Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 12 Sep. 2025

The doors of a three-peat closed on a Sunday in New Orleans last February — figuratively initially but, moments later, literally — along the innards of the Superdome. —Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 12 Sep. 2025

After the sale of Snapette, Kim was looking for her next thing, again, and flung herself far away, figuratively speaking, once again. —Aman Kidwai, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025

His impact was felt most literally, and figuratively, when the veteran defender stripped Pollard at the Denver 37, diving into a pile to rip the rock loose and snuff out a Tennessee threat. —Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above