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A dead metaphor is a metaphor that through overuse has lost figurative value. Examples of dead metaphors include: Look up metaphor in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
In many cases the speaker does not understand the literal meaning of a metaphor, but uses it nevertheless. The user understands the phrase as a complete semantic unit rather than as a metaphor, i.e. the entire phrase carries a meaning distinct from the sum of the meanings of its individual components. Other uses: Foothills are geographically defined as gradual increases in elevated land at the base of a mountain range. ...
The eye of a needle. ...
The separation of powers (or trias politica, a term coined by French political Enlightenment thinker Montesquieu) is a model for the governance of democratic states. ...
A windfall gain is any type of income that is unexpected. ...
Son of a gun is a slang term present in American and British English. ...
For instance, horses once played an important part in human activities, but nowadays few people in the West have experience of them. Despite this, modern English is riddled with equine metaphors: "holding the reins of power", "trot it out", "take the bit between one's teeth", "be saddled with", "put him through his paces", "ride roughshod over", "flogging a dead horse", "give the whip hand", "look a gift horse in the mouth", "long in the tooth", "put out to grass", "getting his oats" and so on. These may be considered dead metaphors as the historical equine-related meaning is generally not appreciated by the contemporary user.
External links The University of Queensland (UQ) is the longest-established university in the state of Queensland, Australia, and a member of Australias Group of Eight. ...
References - Page 237 of Master the AP English Language & Composition Test, a book by Laurie Rozakis
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