metaphor

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noun met·a·phor \ˈme-tə-ˌfȯr also -fər\

Definition of metaphor

1 : a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them (as in drowning in money); broadly : figurative language — compare simile
2 : an object, activity, or idea treated as a metaphor : symbol 2

metaphoric

play \ˌme-tə-ˈfȯr-ik, -ˈfär-\ or

metaphorical

play \-i-kəl\ adjective

metaphorically

play \-i-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

See metaphor defined for English-language learners

See metaphor defined for kids

Examples of metaphor in a Sentence

You see, menudo is our chicken soup for the body and soul, our metaphor for bread-and-butter issues. —Joe Rodriguez, San Jose Mercury News, 20 May 2003
The hapless Humpty Dumpty often crops up as a metaphor for the second law of thermodynamics. —Charles Day, Physics Today, December 2002
Ben Strong, senior, football player, leader of the prayer group, the boy whose very name is a metaphor, has been besieged by the media for interviews. —Jayne Anne Phillips, Harper's, November 1998
The number of songs containing ambiguous metaphors and intriguing but obscure symbolism could be extended indefinitely. Still, … there are hollers, work songs, field songs, and blues whose meaning is really not subject to a great deal of interpretation. —Lawrence W. Levine, “The Concept of the New Negro,” 1971, in The Unpredictable Past, 1993
“He was drowning in paperwork” is a metaphor in which having to deal with a lot of paperwork is being compared to drowning in an ocean of water.
Her poems include many imaginative metaphors.
a poet admired for her use of metaphor

Recent Examples of metaphor from the Web

Is this a metaphor for the diminished authority of the American white male amid demographic shifts?

— christian lorentzen, New Republic, "The spirit of wounded masculinity haunts America in 'A Ghost Story.'", 5 July 2017
Carey shared photos of herself floating carefree through the Dead Sea (a metaphor for many things in 2017), looking as flawless as ever.

— lauren alexis fisher, Harper's BAZAAR, "Let Mariah Carey School You On The Art Of Long Summer Weekends", 30 June 2017
There’s something satisfying about a monetary term grounded in something as humble as grain – or salt, which is the metaphor behind salary.

— ruth walker, The Christian Science Monitor, "Emoluments: grinding out or softening up?", 29 June 2017
The little pas de deux was a perfect metaphor for the relationship between me and my ex.

— jill gleeson, Woman's Day, "Can Horses Understand Our Emotional Pain Better Than Other Humans?", 23 June 2017
There is, for a moment, a touch of metaphor for immigrant empathy in their unfortunate status, but it quickly gets buried in the mounting debris.

— jake coyle, Cincinnati.com, "Review: In ‘The Last Knight,’ round 5 for Transformers", 21 June 2017
But this nonsensical spectacle — which features what look like dancing sperm cells — is also a funny and audacious metaphor: In the gene pool of ideas, some may well prove fertile.

— pat padua, star-telegram, "Cate Blanchett delivers a stirring ‘Manifesto’", 19 June 2017
Is Nardole's bumpy ride on the TARDIS a metaphor for season 10 of Doctor Who?

— kelly fiveash, Ars Technica, "Empress of Mars", 11 June 2017
Backman makes this hard-fighting sport a metaphor for the town’s struggle to stay alive and to achieve success.

— melinda bargreen, The Seattle Times, "A winning tale of hockey, scandal in ‘Beartown’", 9 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'metaphor'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

simile vs. metaphor

Many people have trouble distinguishing between simile and metaphor. A glance at their Latin and Greek roots offers a simple way of telling these two closely-related figures of speech apart. Simile comes from the Latin word similis (meaning “similar, like”), which seems fitting, since the comparison indicated by a simile will typically contain the words as or like. Metaphor, on the other hand, comes from the Greek word metapherein (“to transfer”), which is also fitting, since a metaphor is used in place of something. “My love is like a red, red rose” is a simile, and “love is a rose” is a metaphor.

Origin and Etymology of metaphor

Middle English methaphor, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French metaphore, from Latin metaphora, from Greek, from metapherein to transfer, from meta- + pherein to bear — more at bear

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First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

Other Grammar and Linguistics Terms

ablaut, allusion, anacoluthon, diacritic, gerund, idiom, infinitive, semiotics, simile

METAPHOR Defined for English Language Learners

metaphor

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noun

Definition of metaphor for English Language Learners

: a word or phrase for one thing that is used to refer to another thing in order to show or suggest that they are similar
: an object, activity, or idea that is used as a symbol of something else

METAPHOR Defined for Kids

metaphor

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noun met·a·phor \ˈme-tə-ˌfȯr\

Definition of metaphor for Students

: a figure of speech comparing two unlike things without using like or as “Their cheeks were roses” is a metaphor while “their cheeks were like roses” is a simile.