as in simile
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catachresis
Noun
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Salazar-Thompson’s witty script — packed with hilarious metaphors and similes (like comparing a woman’s firm grip on her purse to that of a two-toed sloth on a branch) — make for a consistently amusing trip back in time.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
9 Mar. 2026 -
Along with another allusion to his quip about Lucien’s death, that simile establishes the Anglo-Irish author as a terrifying counter-example of homosexual exposure.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Now there were no euphemisms for Germany’s leader.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Feb. 2026
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Early critics have called it ‘compassionate,’ which might sound like a euphemism for treacly or didactic.—
Savannah Salazar,
Vulture,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Her lyrics declared independence from clingy lovers and assorted social expectations, often through analogies inspired by technology.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
11 Mar. 2026
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Once again using the housing analogy, think of VPS hosting as your own apartment in a building, with utilities that other tenants can't use.—
Gabriel Zamora,
PC Magazine,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
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But in terms of its actual content, the statement was pretty thin gruel, bristling with public relations-style circumlocution and vagueness.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Jan. 2026
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Here, instead, she’s swayed by a dead Diana softly squeezing her hand and kindly hinting — the dead Diana is an ace at tactful circumlocution — that now is the time to show a mourning nation some emotion.—
Tom Gliatto,
Peoplemag,
16 Nov. 2023
Noun
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Cats, however, may turn out to be the canaries in the coalmines — pardon the mixed metaphor.—
Jan Ellen Spiegel,
Hartford Courant,
24 Dec. 2024
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The triple-mixed metaphor says it all: Licht & Co. are struggling with the intractable problem of how to square the CNN brand’s promise — straight news — with the entertainment imperatives of nighttime television.—
Erik Wemple,
Washington Post,
22 Dec. 2022
Noun
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Savannah Guthrie seemingly used a code word in a video directed toward her missing mother Nancy Guthrie’s kidnappers, a former FBI agent claims.—
Jason Pham,
StyleCaster,
9 Feb. 2026
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Have a safety plan and a family code word.—
Amelia Mugavero,
CBS News,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Privacy and authenticity are valuable assets for any artist to maintain, but Styles has never been a master of crafting a specific image, let alone a lyric that possesses a kind of crystal-clear metaphor or emotion.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
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The Salesman was a story about a woman attacked as a metaphor for a blindsided country, the director brilliantly re-appropriating the ultimate American drama Death of a Salesman to make the point.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Catachresis.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catachresis. Accessed 15 Mar. 2026.
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