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Fossilized metaphor

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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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 so overused it has lost its original figurative impact

Detailed Definition
A fossilized metaphor is a figurative expression so overused that its original imagery has become invisible (e.g., “falling in love”); it functions as dead metaphor, lacking the freshness or surprise that defines effective poetic language.
Example
Example in poetry:
Fossilized metaphor: “Achilles’ heel” to mean vulnerability; “Bite the dust” meaning to die; “Heart of stone” meaning unfeeling; “Break the ice” meaning to initiate conversation
Additional Notes
Fossilized metaphor: A metaphor that has been used so frequently in common language that it is no longer perceived as a figure of speech (e.g., 'the foot of the mountain'); see worn-out trope (7187).
Also Known As
Dead metaphor Petrified figure Calcified comparison Frozen image
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