Figurative Language versus Literal Language - Essay Example

The American language is a living, breathing, and ever evolving language. As such, it is composed of words, phrases, and sentences that find their origins in the most ancient of historical times with its meaning evolving over the years as people use the word for various purposes and to invoke various meanings.There can be figurative uses for the word, or even literal uses which manage to change the context of the word regardless of the word etymology. This paper will look into the etymology and meaning of 10 of the most popular words used in the American English language.

The discussion will be started off by looking into the history and meaning of the word Idiom. The word Idiom first came into play in 1580 and was meant to connote a "form of speech peculiar to a people or place “. Although Latin in origin from the word “idioma”, the modern form of the word actually comes from the French original idiome. (Online Etymology Dictionary) Idioma therefore describes a a language, dialect, or style of speaking that is unique to a particular set of people. It's actual definition is that of a noun that “an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the usual meaning of its constituents” (dictionary.com). Idioms are therefore cultural in nature (Garland, “Oh Idioms: Overused, Amusing, and Often Confusing) and should not be confused wih the figurative metaphors that uses an image for comparison purposes, it is also not a simile or a hyperbole.

(Garland, “Oh Idioms: Overused, Amusing, and Often Confusing).. (Online Etymology Dictionary). It is often confused with the word analysis is the word that is used to describe the process of comparing two things. An example of the use of the word Analogy is “The analogy between the heart and a pump”. (dictionary.com) Now we come to the word Metaphor which is a “figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance” (dictionary.com). The origin of the word dates back to the 1530's from the Latin word Metaphora which meant “a transfer”, specially of one word to a different word (dictionary.com). A sample of a metaphor is “Our fortress is God”.

Therefore a metaphor cannot be confused with a simile. A Simile on the other hand is a “figure of speech where two unlike things are compared”. It is the opposite of a metaphor and dates back to 1393 when the word simile was first used to describe like things. An example of a metaphor would be “She is like a rose.” Now a Cliche, is a “trite, stereotyoed expression that usually expresses a popular or common thought of idea that has lost originality due to overuse.” (dictionary.com) An example of a cliche would be “strong as an ox”.

It is most often confused with the word stereotype. An Amphiboly is “an ambuguity of speech, especially from uncertainty of the grammatical construction rather than that of the meaning of the words”. It seems to describe nonsensical sentences such as “The Duke yet lives that Harry shall depose”. (dictionary.com) In our modern era of speech, new words have been coined to describe the actions of people over the internet. One such word is Flame Word