Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

figurative

 adjective
     
Related topics: Visual, Linguistics
fig‧u‧ra‧tive
1 a figurative word or phrase is used in a different way from its usual meaning, to give you a particular idea or picture in your mind [↪ literal]:
He's my son, in the figurative sense of the word.
2 technicalAV figurative art shows objects, people, or the countryside as they really look [↪ abstract]
—figuratively adverb:
They have a taste - figuratively speaking - for excitement.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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