Questions tagged [metaphors]
A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels."
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"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" but with a more negative connotation [duplicate]
"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" is from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. It means: what matters is what something is, not what it's called.
I feel like this phrase has a very positive ...
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Is this an analogy or metaphor or what? [duplicate]
From mathematics:
"Tensors eat vectors and spit out numbers."
Is this an analogy, metaphor or other named figure of speech?
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What do we call the relationship between something (the design) and another thing (the reference)
Sorry for the poorly written title, cannot think of how to write it better. I am looking for a word or phrase that roughly means "metaphorical environment". I'll explain:
The email system and ...
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help with metaphor [closed]
I'm trying to come up with a metaphor for failed.
I failed like a car out of gas.
Something like that or better.
Having trouble thinking of things, anyone out there creative?
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Top dog v Dark horse meaning difference [closed]
Could someone explain the difference between these 2 above please? Upon its win does a dark horse then become a top dog?
Would a dark horse be more similar to an underdog?
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Is there an English metaphor/saying for this expression?
I'm translating a book and the author has written down a saying that can be translated literally as "If you want to hit a dog you can easily/quickly find a stick" Like, if I wanted to hit a dog, ...
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Is there another way to say, "drive the point in further?" or belabor the point?"
In a work I am writing, two characters are having a discussion that becomes quite heated. The man makes an observation about the woman that is less than flattering and then while she's still ...
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Meaning of quote from 'God Emperor of Dune'
I'm trying to understand the meaning of a quote from the 1981 science fiction novel 'God Emperor of Dune' by Frank Herbert. The quote is;
If it falls outside your yardsticks, then you are engaged ...
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Metaphor or idiom?
My partner and I were discussing rearranging our bedroom. He said that moving the bed would be "a big lift".
The conversation continued and he referred to "a big lift" as an idiom. I replied that ...
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Older equivalent to “concrete thought” metaphor?
What came first, concrete as a way to express a solid thought, or concrete as a solid building material?
And what I am really getting at is, prior to the invention of concrete as a building material, ...
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what is a single word metaphor for fast and cheap [closed]
I need a word or phrase that will describe something as fast and cheap (ie; fast and cheap service)
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Is the phrase "bled our country dry" a metaphor? Or some other figure of speech?
Is the phrase "bled our country dry" a metaphor? Or some other figure of speech?
Context: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ_eV2TRlOg&t=175s
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What is a good metaphor/analogy/idiom espousing the virtues of "developing something gradually over time"? [closed]
My question specifically relates to learning a new skill. Which could be used in the following example:
An aspiring athlete trains for an hour each day without feeling like
she is making much ...
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Meaning of “take a knee”
Ice Cube's intro in his newest album starts with
Yeah, you know me. Super OG.
Always down to take a knee.
What does this last sentence mean? He won‘t literally take someone’s knee I guess..
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Is 'broad and narrow features' metaphorical?
When I say broad features and narrow features, are the "broad" and "narrow" here metaphors for "general" and "specific" or do they mean "big" and "small"?
Supposing broad features of the American ...
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What is meant by "mushroom grandeur" in this context?
What is meant by "mushroom grandeur" in this context? Is it metaphorically means instant, like how mushroom blooms?
"What do you think of that?'' asked his expressive little eyes, ...
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"Getting somewhere with one's life" meaning
In More than Cool Reason book by George Lakoff, I came up with the phrase "Getting somewhere with one's life" which I don't know the meaning. Here is the whole sentence:
First, without such a ...
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“Thought is a thread, and the raconteur is a spinner of yarns"
“Thought is a thread, and the raconteur is a spinner of yarns"
What does this metaphor mean and what is the origin? I know it is an ancient one, but couldn't find anything else! Is it obsolete now?
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Metaphor or Simile?
Is this a metaphor or simile?
You'll get kicked out of the Saloon faster than a card shark can shuffle.
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What's the word for "expressing something completely unfamiliar in familiar terms"?
When a speaker is trying to express something that does not have the right representation is his language or even environment, they use something resembling an analogy or a metaphor. For example, ...
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The difference between an analogy and a metaphor?
Many a time I've asked what the difference is between an analogy and a metaphor. I've asked it to my teacher, on internet sites, to my parents, so on and so forth. I got a different answer every time, ...
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Word for "speeding up a process" in line with the idiom "to kick-start"
I am not a native English speaker but I'm looking for a good word that highlights that a process is improved in that it completes more quickly. I thought there was a word that is semantically in the ...
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Is "The Infinite" a metaphor that can refer to God?
First, I am not entirely sure this can be viewed as a metaphor, but I feel this is an edge case, because like the "Absolute" it refers to a quality of God, but "Infinite" even if it's a quality of God,...
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Can text be monotone?
Someone said to me, "Your text is monotone in fashion" and I just simply can't wrap my mind around this statement. If I am wrong, that is okay. Assume it's a metaphor, can this make any sense?
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"hold on I'll put you through" or "hang on I'll put you through"
Hello, this is Melanie Brown from Central Bank. Can I speak to Mr. Clark?
Please (hold on / hang on) I'll put you through.
Which one - hold on or hang on - is the more appropriate, frequently ...
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Is the poetic device in "silence was golden" best described as metaphor or synesthesia?
After he stopped talking, silence was golden.
What poetic device is used in this sentence?
This was a multiple choice question with the following choices: symbol, synesthesia, metaphor, oxymoron.
I ...
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How to describe a person who has many faces inside him [closed]
I need a phrase to describe a person who has many faces such as good, bad, pure soul, kind but also evil. A person who can't be judged or categorised.
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What is the English version of the Vietnamese idiom "như cá nằm trên thớt" - "like a fish on cutting board"
We have a Vietnamese idiom, "như cá nằm trên thớt" - literally, "like a fish on cutting board". My apology for the rough translation because I regard myself as an English learner who is above the ...
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What's the metaphorical meaning of "Tone-deaf"?
I understand the literal meaning of "Tone-deaf". As Wiktionary puts it:
Unable to clearly distinguish the difference in pitch between
different notes.
But what's the metaphorical meaning?
As a ...
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What is the metaphoric meaning of silo?
Process-oriented organizations break down the barriers of structural departments and try to avoid functional silos.
I was wondering what silo means here? Is it a metaphor?
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Is a sentence with two literal meanings a metaphor?
Yesterday, the Twitter user @TomLarkinSky tweeted:
Metaphor alert: there’s currently no power in the room at No 10 where
the PM is going to make her speech. Might delay things a bit.
Is this a ...
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Alternative phrase for "breaking the glass ceiling"
I’d like to say something like: The prominence of IT has led to significant job creation while also helping migrants break the glass ceiling.
Topic is on migrants and IT. Particularly, those from ...
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What is the negative meaning of blank check?
I am familiar with the meaning of blank check as in carte blanche. Receiving a blank check, in this context, is quite a good thing for the recipient (though perhaps not for the issuer).
In a recent ...
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Is this a simile and is this a metaphor?
The sentence is: To live on this farm is to live in the sky and the grass as well as the house.
Is "as well as the house" a simile or is it just saying something similar to "including the house"?
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What does this quote from "The adventures of Sherlock Holmes" mean? [closed]
A man should keep his little brain attic stocked with all the furniture that he is likely to use, and the rest he can put away in the lumber-room of his library, where he can get it if he wants it.
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What does "to be a fixture" mean?
In Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Hound of Baskervilles" I've run into an idiom I still cannot quite wrap my head around. In the course of a discussion with Dr. Watson, Sherlock Holmes says:
There is a ...
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A metaphor or easy way to say "definitely produce"
I'm having trouble with a noun or metaphor that has the connotation of "definitely produce without exception." Below is the context.
"Note that the tendency to imbue the world with purposes per se ...
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Can breathing be "uneven"? [closed]
I hope this is a valid question to ask. I wondered about the different expressions one can use for heavy or unstable breathing. Rather than being heavy breathing from exercising, it's heavy, laboured ...
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Metaphor / Analogy for something that has both many ancestors and many offspring?
By ancestors, I mean entities and things that affected it and what it is.
By offspring, I mean the opposite - things that it affected and molded.
I thought of "spiderweb," but this would be referring ...
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Catchy phrase: looking at something from several different perspectives
What is the catchy phrase or an aphorism, or a buzzword, or an idiom with the meaning of looking at something from several different perspectives?
In particular, I am looking for something that is ...
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What does "vibrating string" refer to?
I am studying to take the TOEFL exam, which I need to pass if I have any hope of a job promotion. The problem I encountered is the following.
The TOEFL textbook gives me the following example. (It is ...
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Origin of "dog(ging) it"?
The American Heritage Dictionary defines "dog it" as:
Do less than is required; loaf or shirk. For example, I'm afraid our donors are dogging it this year. This expression originated in ...
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Is this a mixed metaphor: 'That initial resentment POISONED our relationship and then GREW with every perceived slight'? [closed]
If so, what would be a better way to phrase that sentence? I don't think "spread" is the right word.
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What is a metaphor for something that seems simple or straightforward but is actually complex or has many considerations involved?
For work I'm writing about a product that on the outside seems simple but has many factors. We are manufacturers of this product and want to sell customers on the idea that we take care of the complex ...
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Analogy in and of itself (not metaphor or simile)
In the accepted answer to: The difference between an analogy and a metaphor? an insightful conclusion was reached that the analogy is what is expressed and the metaphor/simile are how it is expressed. ...
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Omission of 'like' in a comparison
I started reading the Neuromancer and I'm facing a difficulty, especially in the following excerpt:
Ratz was tending bar, his prosthetic arm jerking monotonously as he filled a tray of glasses with ...
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Does “Turtles all the way down” mean endless continuation / exercise similar to ‘peeling onions,’’ or does it represent sophism?
I learned the phrase “Turtles all the way down,” popularized by Stephen Hawking in an answer to my latest question asking the meaning of the phrase, “Mercy within mercy within mercy."
Jmereno ...
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Mind is a fire not a vessel [closed]
"Mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled."
What does this mean?
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rook-haunted as applied to an interior room
In the book I’m reading the author writes:
The Russian clergy had little in common with the Anglican curates and
bishops in whose paneled libraries and rook-haunted chambers James
passed some ...
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How would you characterize the phrase 'a more perfect union'? [closed]
My question pertains to the usage of 'a more perfect union' in its original context-- the preamble to the U.S. Constitution.
I want to say that this is a metaphor, because the authors are using the ...
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