Basic Details
Word: Metaphor
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: A way of describing something by saying it is something else, to show that the two are alike in some way, as in the classroom was a zoo.
Word origin: Comes from Greek metaphora, from metapherein, to carry across: a metaphor carries meaning from one thing to another.
How to Spell Metaphor
Syllables: met - a - phor
Tricky part: The f sound is spelt ph, there is a single a between t and ph, and the ending is or, not er or our.
Watch out for: metafor, metaphore, metephor, metaphour
Memory tip: Say it as three tiny parts: met, a, phor. The ph is the ph of phone, because a metaphor phones a picture into your head.
Usage Examples
Example 1: Calling the noisy hostel a zoo is a metaphor.
Example 2: The poet uses the metaphor of a river for a person's life.
Example 3: Our teacher asked us to find two metaphors in the chapter.
Fun Fact
In modern Greek the related word metafora means transport, so a removal lorry in Athens may carry a word close to metaphor painted on its side.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. similee 2. hyperboly 3. metaphor 4. allitteration
a) exaggerating on purpose for effect
b) repeating the same first sound in nearby words
c) comparing two things using like or as
d) describing something by calling it something else
Show answer
d) describing something by calling it something else. Simile ends in a single e, hyperbole ends in ole and alliteration has two l's and one t; metaphor is the right one.
Word Cookie
Insert the correct letters to form a word:
met_ph_r
a) a, e
b) a, o
c) o, o
d) e, o
Show answer
b) a, o. Met-a-phor: an a in the middle and an o in the last part.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
Saying that the busy railway platform was a beehive is a hopmreat.
a) metaphor
b) meteor
c) megaphone
d) semaphore
Show answer
a) metaphor. These eight letters, with ph and no n or s, make metaphor; meteor has no p or h at all.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which sentence contains a metaphor?
a) He is as tall as a tree.
b) She runs like the wind.
c) Time is a thief.
d) The cat sat on the mat.
Show answer
c) Time is a thief.
2. A simile and a metaphor both compare things, but a simile uses ____.
a) capital letters
b) only numbers
c) like or as
d) rhyming words
Show answer
c) like or as
