figurative meaning
collocation in Englishmeaningsoffigurativeandmeaning
These words are often used together. Click on the links below to explore the meanings. Or,see other collocations withmeaning.
figurative
adjective
uk/ˈfɪɡ.ər.ə.tɪv/us/ˈfɪɡ.jɚ.ə.tɪv/
(of words and phrases) used not with their basic meaning but with a more imaginative meaning, in order to create a ...
See more atfigurative
meaning
noun
uk/ˈmiː.nɪŋ/us/ˈmiː.nɪŋ/
The meaning of something is what it expresses ...
See more atmeaning
(Definition offigurativeandmeaningfrom theCambridge English Dictionary© Cambridge University Press)
Examplesoffigurative meaning
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
According to this criterion, expressions such as ' give a hand' were excluded because theirfigurativemeaningis extremely familiar.
From theCambridge English Corpus
It is not, therefore, a matter of inverting the "literal" meaning andfigurativemeaningbut of determining the "literal" meaning of writing as metaphoricity itself.
From theCambridge English Corpus
A shallow processing of linguistic information makes it difficult to identify thefigurativemeaningof semantically ambiguous sentences.
From theCambridge English Corpus
He had already been (figurativemeaning) try to proceed with an idea or effort.
From theCambridge English Corpus
The choice of the idiomatic answer shows that thefigurativemeaningis recognized as appropriate in the context.
From theCambridge English Corpus
It is unlikely that a strong metaphorical image could occur without grasping the proverb'sfigurativemeaning.
From theCambridge English Corpus
For this investigation, the task contained 20 multiple-choice questions that examined the participants' understanding of each proverb'sfigurativemeaning.
From theCambridge English Corpus
It was assumed that a response of this nature could not occur without having fully internalized thefigurativemeaning.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Cover the bases to have every base covered by a defensive player; (figurativemeaning) to make sure to have everything or every aspect of a matter taken care of.
From theCambridge English Corpus
For each proverb, thefigurativemeaningand its associated psychological concepts were listed on an information sheet that was used to assist in scoring the responses.
From theCambridge English Corpus
For example, the literal meaning of the opaque idiom bring the house down, to destroy a building, has little to do with itsfigurativemeaning, to applaud a performance wildly.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Given the importance of the linguistic context for the interpretation of theirfigurativemeaning, idioms were presented embedded within short stories in which the literal interpretation was nonsense.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Get to first base to hit a single off the pitcher and advance to the first base; (figurativemeaning) to make an initial advance or progress with someone or something.
From theCambridge English Corpus
A string was classified as an opaque metaphor (instead of nonsensical) whenever thefigurativemeaning made sense, although it required a more complex mapping from source to target.
From theCambridge English Corpus
In addition, close examination of all literal responses revealed a mixed literal-metaphorical subtype, an image that was primarily literal but contained elements of thefigurativemeaningof the idiom.
From theCambridge English Corpus
The term upstaging also has since taken on thefigurativemeaningof an actor unscrupulously drawing the audience's attention away from another actor.
From
Wikipedia
If one of the two meanings is figurative, the inseparable version stands for thisfigurativemeaning:: "bersetzen": 1.
From
Wikipedia
Individual words in the idiom can metaphorically contribute to itsfigurativemeaning.
From
Wikipedia
From this came thefigurativemeaningof "boundary" and eventually the phrase "beyond the pale", as something outside the boundary.
From
Wikipedia
Thefigurativemeaningwas broadened from the diminutive extended words "vernaculus, vernacula".
From
Wikipedia
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
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