metonymic

Part for whole

Metonymic describes language that substitutes one thing for something closely associated with it.

When someone says the White House announced or Wall Street is nervous, they're using metonymic expressions—the building stands for the administration, the street for the financial industry.

This adjective form of metonymy appears most often in literary criticism and linguistics when analyzing how such substitutions create meaning or effect.

rhetorical

synecdoche

Part standing for whole

shorthandAbbreviated writing system
allusionIndirect reference to something
substitutionExchange of one for another

transference · contiguity · association · reference · designation · naming · labeling · circumlocution · trope · indirection

representative

stand-in

Temporary human placeholder

proxyAuthorized substitute
emblemRepresentational sign or device
tokenRepresentative placeholder

symbol · epitome · surrogate · substitute · embodiment · exemplar · avatar · icon · representation · instantiation

linguistic

semiotics

Study of signs, symbols

semanticsStudy of linguistic meaning
pragmaticsLanguage-in-context study
denotationWord's explicit dictionary meaning

connotation · signifier · signified · referent · polysemy · adjacency · contiguity

Opposites

directness of reference

metonymicliteral

Meaning exactly what's said

direct · denotative · explicit · proper · referential

figurative vs. literal language

metonymicliteral

Meaning exactly what's said

non-figurative · plain · straightforward · prosaic · unadorned

Family

metonymy, metonym

Familiarity: Top 1,000,000
Profile: Used worldwide · Timeless · Abstract · Rated G