extended metaphor

[ ik-sten-did met-uh-fawr ]

noun

1. a metaphor introduced and then further developed throughout all or part of a literary work, especially a poem:

   Robert Frost uses two roads as an extended metaphor in “The Road Not Taken.”

2. a literary work that contains an extended metaphor.

Word History and Origins

Origin of extended metaphor¹

First recorded in 1710–20

Example Sentences

As to “Buffy” itself, vamps and demons and the occasional tragic death of a beloved character aside, the series, which debuted in 1997 and changed the nature of television teenage storytelling, is at heart a comedy, an extended metaphor for the ordinary horrors of high school.

From Los Angeles Times

As the plot swings between slightly overbearing teen angst and extrapolations into quantum physics — itself an extended metaphor for the angst-inducing, open-ended possibilities of adolescence — the art in-jokes feel like a concession to adult aesthetes.

From New York Times

Time for an extended metaphor about Ted's southern youth.

From Salon

Time for an extended metaphor about Ted's southern youth.

From Salon

He has turned his inspirational story into an extended metaphor for racial progress and collective triumph over adversity.

From Washington Post