CAMBRIDGE
ENGLISH VOCABULARY IN USE ADVANCED
UNIT 93
Metaphor: seeing the light
A
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What are metaphors?
Metaphor
is concerned with using words in abstract rather than literal ways. It is a
way of expressing something by comparing it indirectly with something else that
has similar characteristics.
If
we call a city a jungle, for example, we are using a metaphor. We are
suggesting that a city is like a jungle, in that it is wild and full of
dangers.
If
we say that someone lights up our life, we are using a metaphor. We
are suggesting that person is like a light in our life, in that they make our
life brighter and happier.
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B
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Idioms and metaphors
Many
idioms are metaphorical expressions which are in common use. be on the
ball [be very aware of things and ready to act – like a good footballer] to
keep someone/something on a tight rein [have a lot of control
over someone/something – like a rider having control over a horse]
Some
of the most common idiom-metaphors are based on parts of the body. So we
might say that a building is in the heart of the city. [centre] We can
call the place where a river joins the sea its mouth, and the person
in charge of an organisation its head. If you say that someone has
an eye for a bargain, you mean they are good at finding a bargain. If you
keep a (close) eye on someone/something, you watch them carefully. If
you say that something is in safe hands, you mean that the person in
charge is capable. If you say that something goes hand in hand with something
else, you mean that they exist together and are interconnected:
Rights
go hand in hand with responsibilities. If you talk about doing
something using a rule of thumb, you mean you are calculating
something in a way that is not exact but will allow you to be accurate
enough.
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C
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Common metaphorical concepts in
English
Many
words in English are so frequently used in a metaphorical way that English
speakers may no longer notice that they are metaphors. Here are some
examples:
•
Intelligence and understanding are equated with light; for example, a clever
person is called bright and a less intelligent person dim. If
you see the light, you understand something. To cast light
on something means making it easier to understand: The discovery of the
poet’s letters has cast light on his troubled relationship with
his brother.
•
Intensity of feeling or passion is equated with temperature; someone who is
enthusiastic at one time and not at another is said to blow hot and cold.
If someone is hotheaded, then they react quickly on the basis of their
feelings without thinking first. If you call someone cold-hearted,
then you think they are without feeling.
•
The movement of people or traff ic is equated with the movement of water; we
can, for example, talk of people flooding or trickling out of a
hall, or say there was a constant stream of traff ic past the window.
•
Time is likened to money; both are seen as commodities that can be spent or
wasted or used profitably. You can also talk about investing
time, using it in a way that you think will pay dividends in
future. [bring you advantages]
•
Business is likened to a military operation; strategies, tactics and
campaigns are used in both contexts. So a company might launch an
advertising campaign, for example, or work on its marketing strategy.
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EXERCISES
93.1
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Choose
a word from the box that can be used metaphorically to complete the sentence.
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93.2
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Here
are some more idioms which are based on metaphors. What is the idiom in each sentence
and what does it mean? What aspect of life does it draw its image from?
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93.3
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Here
are some more examples of the five metaphorical concepts in C opposite.
Underline
the metaphor and say which concept it exemplifies and what it suggests.
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93.4
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More
unusual and original metaphors are used a great deal in literature. Here are
some famous metaphors from Shakespeare. Underline the metaphors in each case
and explain what they suggest.
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ANSWER KEY
93.1
1
eye
2 hands 3 heart 4 jungle 5 thumb 6 ball 7 mouth 8 head 9 rein 10 light
93.2
1
holding the reins = in charge; idiom taken from horse riding
2 moving the goalposts = changing the rules; idiom from football 3 a half-baked idea = an idea that is not fully thought through or developed; idiom from cookery 4 to tighten our belts = to reduce our spending; idiom from dressing 5 to take (something) on board = to understand and accept; idiom from loading a ship 6 on track = likely to complete a planned course of action; idiom from travel (e.g. along railway tracks) 7 around the clock = day and night; idiom based on the movement of the hands of a clock 8 take something/someone at face value = to accept something/someone as how they appear at first, without thinking they could be something else; idiom based on the image of a coin or stamp where the value is stated on its ‘face’
93.3
1
This book throws a great deal of fresh light on the history of the
period. = This books tells us a
great deal that is new about the history …; from the concept of intelligence as light 2 We could save half an hour at least if we went through the wood. = We could gain half an hour …; from the concept of time as money 3 Try to keep cool even if he argues with you. = Try to keep calm …; from the concept of intense feeling as temperature 4 We spent months trying to achieve our sales targets. = (two metaphors) We devoted a long time to trying hard to sell as many of our products as we were aiming for; from the concepts of time as money and business as a military operation 5 Police tried to control the flow of the fans as they left the concert. = Police tried to control the movement of the fans …; from the concept of movement of people as water
93.4
1
All the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players.
The line suggests that life is like a theatre and that possibly the roles are written in advance, with people being like actors in that they all have different parts to play. (from As You Like It) 2 We are such stuff as dreams are made on; and our little life is rounded with a sleep. The line suggests that people’s lives have as little substance as a dream. Death is likened to sleep at the end of the short day that is all that life is. (from The Tempest) 3 There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune. The line suggests that our lives have tides like the sea and we must take advantage of lucky opportunities, metaphorical flood tides, in order to be transported to good times. (from Julius Caesar) |
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