Meaning & use
metaphorically speaking
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Meanings
phrasefixed phrase
Used to show that you are describing something in an imaginative, non-literal way rather than stating a plain fact.
Grammar: Acts as a sentence adverb, so a comma normally follows or precedes it: Metaphorically speaking, the company is drowning.
Patterns
- metaphorically speaking, ...
- ..., metaphorically speaking
Metaphorically speaking, my inbox is a bottomless pit that never empties.
The team hit a wall last season — metaphorically speaking, of course, since no one was hurt.
She called the old factory the heart of the town, metaphorically speaking.
phrasefixed phrase
Used to soften a strong comparison so that listeners know you do not mean it exactly.
Grammar: Often placed after a figurative expression to mark it clearly as an image, not a claim.
Patterns
- ..., metaphorically speaking
He is the engine of this project, metaphorically speaking.
We were walking on thin ice, metaphorically speaking, with the deadline so close.
Common combinations
- put it metaphorically
- To put it metaphorically, our budget is a leaky bucket.
- speak metaphorically
- When I say the city never sleeps, I am speaking metaphorically.
- metaphorically and literally
- Some people take the phrase both metaphorically and literally.
- metaphorically speaking, of course
- My boss is a dragon, metaphorically speaking, of course.
Synonyms and how they differ
- figuratively speaking
- Very close in meaning, but it stresses that words are being used as figures of speech rather than images.
- in a manner of speaking
- Suggests that what you said is only partly true or loosely accurate, not necessarily metaphorical.
Opposites
Word family
- metaphor noun
- A figure of speech that describes one thing as another, such as 'time is money'.
- metaphorical adjective
- Describing language that uses images rather than literal meaning.
- metaphorically adverb
- In a way that uses images or comparisons rather than literal meaning.
Commonly confused: metaphorically speaking or literally speaking?
metaphorically speaking vs literally speaking
This means the opposite: that your words should be taken exactly as stated, with no image involved.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'metaphorically speaking' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Option 1 compares the computer to a dinosaur, an image rather than a fact, so the phrase fits. The other options state plain facts or give an instruction, where a literal statement is intended.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “metaphorically speaking”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.