Home › Glossary › Letter C

Channel metaphor

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A metaphor that likens communication, emotion, or thought to a conduit or pathway

Detailed Definition
A channel metaphor is a sustained figurative comparison in which a concept, emotion, or process is likened to a conduit or pathway—such as a river, wire, or corridor—that directs, transmits, or filters energy, information, or feeling; it often appears in poems exploring communication, inspiration, or spiritual transmission.
Example
Example in poetry:
In “The Road Not Taken,” Frost uses the forked path as a channel metaphor for life choices; In “Crossing the Bar,” Tennyson uses the sandbar as a channel between life and death; In “O Captain! My Captain!”, Whitman uses the ship’s harbor as a channel metaphor for national grief; In “Dover Beach,” Arnold’s ebbing tide channels the retreat of faith.
Additional Notes
Channel metaphor: A metaphor comparing thought or expression to channels or streams; often used to depict communication or flow of meaning.
Also Known As
Conduit metaphor Channeling image Stream comparison
Skip to main content