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Showing results for figurative. Search instead for figurativenes.
Definitions

figurative

[fig-yer-uh-tiv] / ˈfɪg yər ə tɪv /


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Dunlap broadside was a broadside in a figurative sense as well as a literal one, blasting its message like cannons fired from the side of a warship.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

"The most important centre of Islamic civilisation in the 15th century endorsed figurative art," he added.

From Barron's • Feb. 4, 2026

Along with very old figurative and narrative paintings from Sulawesi, a new consensus is being shaped; that there was a much deeper and more widespread story of creativity, Aubert told BBC News.

From BBC • Jan. 21, 2026

So it didn’t matter what was being said about us by outside voices, because inside our literal and figurative tent, we believed.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 7, 2025

Now lined with a row of small shops, the tradition continues, though in a figurative rather than literal sense.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris




Vocabulary lists containing figurative