ˈmed.əˌfȯ(ə)r, ˈmetə-, -ȯ(ə) also -_fə(r) sometimes -ˌfō(ə)r or -ōə noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French or Latin; Middle French metaphore, from Latin metaphora, from Greek, from metapherein to transfer, change, from meta- + pherein to bear — more at bear
: a figure of speech in which a word or phrase denoting one kind of object or action is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them (as in the ship plows the seas or in a volley of oaths ) : an implied comparison (as in a marble brow ) in contrast to the explicit comparison of the simile (as in a brow white as marble ) — compare trope