A direct or indirect comparison between two unlike things is known as a metaphor. It presents one thing in terms of another to highlight a shared quality or create a vivid image, as in “The classroom was a zoo.” The classroom is not literally a zoo; the comparison suggests noise or disorder.
The word “metaphor” comes from the ancient Greek metaphora, meaning “a transfer” or “carrying across.” The idea is that a word or image is carried from its usual context into a new one. Metaphors appear in poetry, speeches, journalism, everyday conversation, and even scientific explanations.
A common mix-up is confusing a metaphor with a simile. A simile makes the comparison explicit with words such as “like” or “as,” as in “Her smile was like sunshine.” A metaphor usually makes the comparison more direct or implied: “Her smile was sunshine.” Personification gives human qualities to nonhuman things, onomatopoeia imitates sounds, and hyperbole uses deliberate exaggeration; none specifically names this comparison.