metaphoric
Figuratively speaking, perhaps
Metaphoric means expressed through or involving metaphor—describing one thing in terms of another to illuminate meaning.
A metaphoric description of grief as drowning conveys emotional overwhelm through physical imagery.
The word functions identically to metaphorical, though metaphorical appears more frequently in most contexts.
Comparison via "as"
- analogyExplanatory likeness between things
- allegorySymbolic tale with deeper meaning
- personificationAttributing humanity to non-humans
- hyperboleRhetorical extreme exaggeration
metonymy · synecdoche · idiom · euphemism · irony · understatement · oxymoron · antithesis
Vivid descriptive language
- lyricismExpressive, melodic quality
- verseMetered poetic passage
- rhymeMatching terminal sounds
- rhythmPatterned stress and silence
cadence · diction · connotation · alliteration · assonance · meter · stanza · sonnet
Representational sign or device
- representationDepiction or likeness
- archetypeOriginal model for copies
- avatarDigital user representation
- manifestationOutward display of something
epitome · quintessence · signifier · icon · token · stand-in · surrogate · proxy
Tending to summon memories
- suggestiveHinting at impropriety
- allusiveContaining indirect references
- resonantDeeply vibrating with sound
- connotativeImplying beyond literal sense
implicit · indirect · oblique · inferential · layered · nuanced · coded · veiled
Extravagantly unreal or imaginary
- visionaryImaginative planner of futures
- dreamlikeHazy and fantastical
- surrealDreamlike and strange
- fancifulImaginatively unrealistic
whimsical · mythic · illusory · otherworldly · ethereal · hallucinatory · phantasmagorical · chimeric
simile
Comparison via "as"
- analogyExplanatory likeness between things
- allegorySymbolic tale with deeper meaning
- personificationAttributing humanity to non-humans
hyperbole · metonymy · synecdoche · idiom · euphemism · irony · understatement · oxymoron · antithesis · parable
imagery
Vivid descriptive language
rhythm · cadence · diction · connotation · alliteration · assonance · meter · stanza · sonnet · haiku
emblem
Representational sign or device
- representationDepiction or likeness
- archetypeOriginal model for copies
- avatarDigital user representation
manifestation · epitome · quintessence · signifier · icon · token · stand-in · surrogate · proxy · cipher
evocative
Tending to summon memories
- suggestiveHinting at impropriety
- allusiveContaining indirect references
- resonantDeeply vibrating with sound
connotative · implicit · indirect · oblique · inferential · layered · nuanced · coded · veiled · elliptical
fantastical
Extravagantly unreal or imaginary
fanciful · whimsical · mythic · illusory · otherworldly · ethereal · hallucinatory · phantasmagorical · chimeric · escapist
metaphoricliteral
Meaning exactly what's said
nonfigurative · denotative · direct · plain · straightforward
- mixed metaphorIncongruent figures jumbled together
- extended metaphorFigurative comparison throughout text
- visual metaphorConcept shown through imagery
- dead metaphorFigurative phrase now literal-seeming
- metaphorical languageWords used non-literally
- metaphorical speechLanguage using symbolic comparison