英语语法：69 Metaphors and Similes

Hi! This is Stever Robbins, host of the Get-it-Done Guy’s Quick and Dirty Tips to Work Less and Do More. Grammar Girl is working on her book this week and since I do a lot of public speaking, she asked me to talk about how to use similes² and metaphors⁴ to spice up your speaking and writing.

Metaphors and Similes: Definitions
Metaphors and similes both call attention to how two different things are similar, so people listening to you can apply the qualities of one thing to the other. The difference between metaphors and similes is that similes hit you over the head with the comparison by using explicit⁵ words such as “like” or “as,” -- When Jon Bon Jovi sings “My heart is like an open highway,” that's a simile¹ because he used the word “like” to directly make the comparison. Metaphors, on the other hand, don't use direct comparison words. When Tom Cochrane sings “Life is a Highway,” that's a metaphor³ because there's no word such as like or as. Metaphors are a bit more subtle. You can remember the difference between similes and metaphors by remembering that simile has the letter l in it, just like the word “like,” which you often use in a simile.
Metaphors and Similes: Uses
People use these figures of speech when speaking romantically. “Dearest, your eyes sparkle as starlight in the water of a deep, cool well.” The speaker is drawing a parallel between his beloved’s eyes and starlight in a well. She doesn’t actually have wells for eyes; if she did, she would slosh when she walked. But her eyes do sparkle, and that is the connection he’s drawing.
You can also use metaphors and similes to help explain concepts that confuse your listener. First, identify the point you want to explain. Then find a topic your listener might know well where that point also comes up. Then use a comparison to link your point to the familiar topic to help your listener understand.
Metaphors and Similes: Examples
For example, imagine a teenage comic-book geek interviewing for college. (Yes, that was me. I even owned the original X-Men Phoenix⁶ series and Superman Bizarro issues, which would be worth a fortune today if Mom hadn’t thrown them out.) I, er, HE, might put on a t-shirt and jeans for the interview. You could use superheroes as a metaphor to explain why he should dress up: “You can’t go to an interview in your secret identity. If you want them to think you’re Superman, you have to dress the part. Dress your best!”
In this example, you’re drawing a connection between the college applicant⁷ and Superman. He likes that. You want to tell him that wearing a suit will help him seem more professional, more “super.” This is the same as the difference between Clark Kent and Superman: Clark, with the secret identity, blends into the crowd, and Superman stands out, in a good way. (It’s amazing what great abs, lycra, and super powers can do for a guy). By using comics, you can make a point about dressing⁸ for success.
Here are some more examples:
You can teach the difference between deficit⁹ and debt by using a beach metaphor: Many people think deficit and debt mean the same thing. Not quite. Imagine digging a hole at the beach with a shovel¹⁰. The debt is the hole and the deficit is the shovel. You can make the shovel (that is, the deficit) larger or smaller, but all that does is change how fast the hole gets bigger. If you want to pay off the debt and fill in the hole, first you need to eliminate the deficit entirely¹¹, then start refilling the hole. The image of the beach is a lot easier to remember than than some dry financial explanation. The beach may never look the same again! Also, note that this was a metaphor because I said, “The debt IS the hole,” and not “The debt is LIKE a hole.” No word like “like,” so it's the word without the l – metaphor.
Here's another example.
A friend started discussing podcasts and realized his mother doesn't know what a podcast is. He said, “Mom, a podcast is like a daily radio show that gets delivered to your iPod, instead of over the radio.” His mother knows that radio shows are sound shows that broadcast regularly. The simile of “podcast=radio show” helped her transfer all that knowledge to instantly understand podcasts. That was a simile because he said “Podcasts are LIKE radio shows,” I used the L-word (like) in the sentence, so we use the L-word (simile) to describe the comparison.
Here's one last example.
What is the difference between marketing¹² and sales, anyway? Marketing is projecting an image to customers in your market, and sales is actually going out and getting the customers to buy. It’s like getting a date. Marketing is putting on your coolest clothes, styling your hair to look oh-so-casual, and showing up at a party, ready for love. Sales is actually walking across the room, scoring a phone number, and getting a “Yes” to dinner and a movie Saturday night.
Next time you have a difficult idea to explain, try using a simile or a metaphor. It may take a few extra minutes to think up the metaphor, but once you have it, you can often get your point across faster and help your audience actually remember what you said.
 
This has been Stever Robbins, filling in for Grammar Girl. If you want to hear more from me, I host the newest Quick and Dirty Tips podcast called The Get-It-Done Guy's Quick and Dirty Tips to Work Less and Do More. This week's show tells you how to save time – hours per year -- by skipping most voice-mail greetings. You can find my show, along with Grammar Girl's show and all our contact information, at QuickAndDirtyTips.com. And don't forget to subscribe¹³ at iTunes so you never miss a new episode.
That's all. Thanks for listening.

 

1 simile   

n.直喻，明喻

参考例句：

• I believe this simile largely speaks the truth.我相信这种比拟在很大程度上道出了真实。
• It is a trite simile to compare her teeth to pearls.把她的牙齿比做珍珠是陈腐的比喻。

2 similes   

（使用like或as等词语的）明喻( simile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Similes usually start with "like" or "as". 明喻通常以like或as开头。
• All similes and allegories concerning her began and ended with birds. 要比仿她，要模拟她，总得以鸟类始，还得以鸟类终。

3 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

4 metaphors   

隐喻( metaphor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I can only represent it to you by metaphors. 我只能用隐喻来向你描述它。
• Thus, She's an angel and He's a lion in battle are metaphors. 因此她是天使，他是雄狮都是比喻说法。

5 explicit   

adj.详述的，明确的；坦率的；显然的

参考例句：

• She was quite explicit about why she left.她对自己离去的原因直言不讳。
• He avoids the explicit answer to us.他避免给我们明确的回答。

6 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

7 applicant   

n.申请人，求职者，请求者

参考例句：

• He was the hundredth applicant for the job. 他是第100个申请这项工作的人。
• In my estimation, the applicant is well qualified for this job. 据我看, 这位应征者完全具备这项工作的条件。

8 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

9 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

10 shovel   

n.铁锨，铲子，一铲之量；v.铲，铲出

参考例句：

• He was working with a pick and shovel.他在用镐和铲干活。
• He seized a shovel and set to.他拿起一把铲就干上了。

11 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

12 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

13 subscribe   

vi.(to)订阅，订购；同意；vt.捐助，赞助

参考例句：

• I heartily subscribe to that sentiment.我十分赞同那个观点。
• The magazine is trying to get more readers to subscribe.该杂志正大力发展新订户。