metaphor | ˈmɛtəfə , -fɔː | noun a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable : when we speak of gene maps and gene mapping, we use a cartographic metaphor | [ mass noun ] : her poetry depends on suggestion and metaphor . • a thing regarded as representative or symbolic of something else : the amounts of money being lost by the company were enough to make it a metaphor for an industry that was teetering . DERIVATIVES metaphoric | -ˈfɒrɪk | adjective ORIGIN late 15th cent. : from French métaphore , via Latin from Greek metaphora , from metapherein ‘ to transfer ’ .