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Motion 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 that conveys movement or change through figurative language

Detailed Definition
Motion metaphor is a figurative expression where movement is central to the comparison, as in “time gallops” or “grief crawls,” imbuing abstract concepts with physical trajectory and pace; this device animates emotion or thought, making internal states tangible through kinetic imagery that resonates viscerally with the reader.
Example
Example in poetry:
“Grief crawls through the house at night”; “Hope leaps like a salmon upstream”; “Doubt coils in the gut”; “Joy bursts like a firework”
Additional Notes
A motion metaphor compares one thing to another through the lens of movement (e.g., “time flows like a river”); it emphasizes process, change, or directionality over static qualities.
Also Known As
Metaphor in motion kinetic simile flowing comparison dynamic image Kinetic metaphor
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