figure of speech

American  

[fig-yer uhv speech] / ˈfɪg yər əv ˈspitʃ /

noun

Rhetoric.

plural

figures of speech

1. any expressive use of language, as a metaphor, simile, personification, or antithesis, in which words are used in other than their literal sense, or in other than their ordinary locutions, in order to suggest a picture or image or for other special effect.

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figure of speech British  

noun

1. an expression of language, such as simile, metaphor, or personification, by which the usual or literal meaning of a word is not employed

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Etymology

Origin of figure of speech

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

“This wording, like going from minister of defense to minister of war — let’s hope it’s just a figure of speech,” he recently said in Italian.

From Salon

In baseball parlance, that phrase is typically a figure of speech.

From Los Angeles Times

But it’s certainly more than a figure of speech.

From Los Angeles Times

“That’s a figure of speech. The purse is the prize money. His winnings.”

From Literature

The term “deafening silence” is even a common figure of speech.

From Scientific American