ISEE/SSAT Vocabulary BuilderWordsMmetaphorical
ISEE/SSATmedium
metaphorical
Meaning: based on a comparison rather than a literal meaning
metaphorical in a sentence
How metaphorical is used in real sentences:
When the coach said the team was on fire, he meant it in a metaphorical sense.
Her essay explained that the river in the novel was metaphorical, standing for the passage of time rather than a real place.
“Her final report treated each transfer as a metaphorical bridge between strangers, while warning that researchers could not judge its strength from the amount alone.”
— from the passage Signals at the Table
Synonyms for metaphorical
Other words for metaphorical — figurative, symbolic and allegorical — carry the same meaning.
- figurative
- symbolic
- allegorical
Antonyms of metaphorical
Words that mean the opposite of metaphorical:
- literal
Where it comes from
From Greek metaphora 'a transfer, carrying over'
Word parts
- met/meta — changed, different, boundary
metaphorical: meta- (across) + phor (carry) + -ical (relating to)
Memory hook
META (beyond) + PHOR (carry) — carrying meaning beyond the literal.
Practice metaphorical in the app