figurative
using words in a non-literal or metaphorical way
Root
- fig: form, shape, or figure
Other words with the fig root
- figure: a shape, form, number, or figure of speech
Figurative language shapes meaning through image instead of saying it literally.
When she called the deadline a storm, the phrase was figurative, not literal.
Figure begins with shape and form. Figurative language gives an idea a shape the mind can hold: a storm for pressure, a wall for resistance, a light for clarity.