as in code word
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dead metaphor
Many of our emotion terms are references to states of the body—we’re downcast, bent out of shape, head over heels, shaken up, down in the mouth—which have slowly rigidified into dead metaphor.
—
Nikhil Krishnan, The New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2022
This shift reminds us that dead metaphors aren’t always terminally dead.
—Rob Nixon, Smithsonian, 23 Mar. 2018
Nikhil Krishnan, The New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2022
This shift reminds us that dead metaphors aren’t always terminally dead.
—Rob Nixon, Smithsonian, 23 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dead metaphor
Noun
-
Halbreich told me that prominent art institutions are already using code words, like community, to talk about diversity.—
Rachel Corbett,
Vulture,
10 Apr. 2025
-
These traffickers often use code words and emojis to avoid being detected by law enforcement or censored by platform guidelines.—
Rachel Hale,
USA Today,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Look at rumors, gossip, metaphors, euphemisms, folktales—all the means by which subordinate groups disguise their opposition.—
Nikil Saval,
New Yorker,
7 Apr. 2025
-
The Afghanistan Experience Using the euphemism for its aggression in Ukraine, the Kremlin has launched initiatives over the last two years called the Association of the Special Military Operation (SVO) and the SVO Military Brotherhood.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Using a baseball analogy, no painter throws harder than Kent Monkman.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes.com,
18 Apr. 2025
-
Extending the spaceport-airport analogy a little further, the closure of America's busiest airport for a week or more would be a big deal.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
18 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
The parts that do resonate feel like physical metaphors ripped out of real life.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2025
-
In some ways, this is a good metaphor for the experience of Ramsey, of whom their co-star speaks with particular admiration.—
Fernanda Pérez Sánchez,
Vogue,
16 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
No metaphors or similes or hyperbolic language needed here – your kids are next.—
Rob Gagnon,
Hartford Courant,
25 Mar. 2025
-
Her father was a scientist and worked for NASA, so her work, including The Body’s Question and Life on Mars, is infused with the cosmos and space and all these metaphors and similes tied to the most mysterious places in the universe.—
Lisa Wong Macabasco,
Vogue,
22 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dead metaphor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dead%20metaphor. Accessed 1 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share