figurative

[fig-yer-uh-tiv]

adjective

1. of the nature of or involving a figure of speech, especially a metaphor; metaphorical and not literal.

   The word "head" has several figurative senses, as in "She's the head of the company."

   Synonyms: symbolic, metaphorical

2. metaphorically so called.

   His remark was a figurative boomerang.

3. abounding in or fond of figures of speech.

   Elizabethan poetry is highly figurative.

   Synonyms: grandiloquent, florid, elaborate, flowery, ornamental, ornate

4. representing by means of a figure or likeness, as in drawing or sculpture.

5. representing by a figure or emblem; emblematic.

figurative

/ ˈfɪɡərətɪv /

adjective

1. of the nature of, resembling, or involving a figure of speech; not literal; metaphorical

2. using or filled with figures of speech

3. representing by means of an emblem, likeness, figure, etc

4. (in painting, sculpture, etc) of, relating to, or characterized by the naturalistic representation of the external world

Other Word Forms

• figurativeness noun
• figuratively adverb
• nonfigurative adjective
• nonfigurativeness noun
• semifigurative adjective
• semifigurativeness noun
• unfigurative adjective
• unfigurativeness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of figurative¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English figuratif, fygurative, from Old French figuratif, from Late Latin figūrātīvus; figure ( def. ), -ative

Example Sentences

This future she’s battling is figurative, yet her desperate self-reliance — her inability to trust others — is deeply relatable to anyone struggling to get by without a safety net.

From Los Angeles Times

Each episode allows us to get to know more about them beyond a few quirks or twirls of the figurative mustache.

From Salon

"Unless more evidence comes through, we aren't going to know. But the extraordinary flourishing of figurative art tells us that people really took to the idea of imagining the divine as human."

From BBC

The Hammer Museum presents the first United States institutional survey of figurative painter Noah Davis, highlighting his perceptive blend of realism and dreamlike imagery.

From Los Angeles Times

I’m very focused on breaking down the hierarchy of what figurative painting is.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• allegorical 
• descriptive 
• fanciful 
• florid 
• metaphoric www.thesaurus.com
• metaphorical 
• pictorial