figurative

English

Etymology

From Middle French figuratif.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfɪɡəɹətɪv/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

figurative (comparative more figurative, superlative most figurative)

1. Of use as a metaphor, simile, metonym or other figure of speech, as opposed to literal; using figures; as when saying that someone who eats more than they should is a pig or like a pig.
   • 2005 May 1, “The Sea of Love”, in New York Times‎^[1]:

     The lovers she seems to pursue with her figurative language in fact retreat under the barrage of similes, metaphors and fables.

2. Metaphorically so called.
3. With many figures of speech.
4. Emblematic, symbolic; representative, exemplative
   • 1594–1597, Richard Hooker, J[ohn] S[penser], editor, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, […], London: […] Will[iam] Stansby [for Matthew Lownes], published 1611, →OCLC, (please specify the page):

     This, they will say, was figurative, and served, by God's appointment, but for a time, to shadow out the true glory of a more divine sanctity.

5. (art) Representing forms recognisable in life and clearly derived from real object sources, in contrast to abstract art.
   • 1875-1886, John Addington Symonds, Renaissance in Italy

     They belonged to a nation dedicated to the figurative arts, and they wrote for a public familiar with painted form.

Usage notes

• Said of language, expression, etc.

Antonyms

• literal

Derived terms

• figuratively
• figurativeness

 

Related terms

• figure

Translations

metaphorical; not literal

• Arabic: اِسْتِعَارِيّ‎ (istiʕāriyy), مَجَازِيّ‎ (majāziyy), رَمْزِيّ‎ (ramziyy)
• Azerbaijani: məcazi (az)
• Bulgarian: преносен (bg) (prenosen), метафоричен (bg) (metaforičen)
• Catalan: figuratiu
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 比喻 (zh) (bǐyù), 象徵／象征 (zh) (xiàngzhēng)

• Czech: přenesený, obrazný
• Danish: overført, billedlig
• Dutch: overdrachtelijk (nl), figuurlijk (nl)
• Estonian: kujundlik
• Finnish: kuvaannollinen (fi)
• French: figuratif (fr), figuré (fr)
• Galician: figurativo m
• Georgian: მეტაფორული (meṭaporuli), ხატოვანი (xaṭovani), გადატანითი (gadaṭaniti)
• German: bildlich (de), figürlich (de), metaphorisch (de), symbolisch (de), übertragen (de), uneigentlich (de), verblümt
• Greek: μεταφορικός (el) (metaforikós)

  Ancient: τροπικός (tropikós)

• Hungarian: átvitt (hu), képletes (hu), jelképes (hu)
• Italian: figurativo (it)
• Japanese: 比喩的な (ja) (ひゆてきな, hiyuteki-na)
• Latin: tropicus (la)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: billedlig

  Nynorsk: biletleg

• Occitan: figurat
• Persian: استعاری‎ (fa) (este'âri), انگاری‎ (fa) (engâri)
• Polish: przenośny (pl)
• Portuguese: figurativo (pt)
• Romanian: figurativ (ro) m or n
• Russian: перено́сный (ru) (perenósnyj), о́бразный (ru) (óbraznyj), фигура́льный (ru) (figurálʹnyj), метафори́ческий (ru) (metaforíčeskij)
• Scottish Gaelic: samhlachail
• Spanish: figurativo, figurado (es), traslaticio
• Swedish: figurativ (sv)
• Turkish: mecazi (tr)
• Ukrainian: о́бразний (óbraznyj), перено́сний (perenósnyj)
• Vietnamese: nghĩa bóng (vi)

metaphorically so called

• Bulgarian: преносен (bg) (prenosen)
• Danish: såkaldt, symbolsk
• Georgian: გადატანითი მნიშვნელობით (gadaṭaniti mnišvnelobit)
• German: im übertragenen Sinne
• Hungarian: átvitt értelemben (hu)
• Occitan: figurat

with many figures of speech

• Bulgarian: образен (bg) (obrazen)
• German: bilderreich
• Greek: πολύσημος (el) m (polýsimos)
• Occitan: figurat
• Persian: پراستعاره‎ (porâste'âre)

emblematic

• German: sinnbildlich (de), symbolisch (de)
• Greek: εικαστικός (el) m (eikastikós)
• Hungarian: jelképes (hu), szimbolikus (hu)
• Occitan: figurat, figuratiu (oc)

art

• Afrikaans: figuurlik (af)
• Catalan: figuratiu
• Danish: figurativ
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: figurativ

  Nynorsk: figurativ

See also

• transferred sense

Further reading

• figurative at OneLook Dictionary Search
• “figurative”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “figurative”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “figurative”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “figurative”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• figurative in Britannica Dictionary
• What is figurative language?, merriam-webster.com
• figurative in WordReference English Collocations
• Figurative art on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Literal and figurative language on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fi.ɡy.ʁa.tiv/
• Homophone: figuratives

Adjective

figurative

1. feminine singular of figuratif

German

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Adjective

figurative

1. inflection of figurativ:
   1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
   2. strong nominative/accusative plural
   3. weak nominative all-gender singular
   4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular

Italian

Adjective

figurative

1. feminine plural of figurativo

Anagrams

• figuratevi

Norwegian Bokmål

Adjective

figurative

1. definite singular/plural of figurativ

Norwegian Nynorsk

Adjective

figurative

1. definite singular/plural of figurativ