Metaphor

A metaphor is when a word or phrase for one thing is used in place of another in order to make a comparison between two unlike things and suggest a similarity. Unlike a simile, a metaphor states that something is something else rather than saying it is like something else.

Common examples include "raining cats and dogs" to describe heavy rainfall, or describing someone with a cold temperament as having "a heart of stone." The key distinction from similes is that metaphors do not employ the words "like" or "as."

Metaphors are one of the most fundamental tools in a poet's toolkit. They allow writers to compress complex ideas and emotions into vivid, memorable images. "Life is a highway" says something about life's journey in four words that paragraphs of literal description couldn't match.