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2 METAPHOR VOCABULARY – ANSWERS

2 Rationale
This is important as in the seen reading assessment (on Friday of week 2) there is a whole
section in the report that uses the conceptual metaphor of language as a living thing.
2 Therefore it would be useful for the students to have done this work first.

Task 1 – These simple tasks (re) introduce the topic of metaphor – words having a literal and
figurative meaning.

The dictionary definition of metaphor is ‘a word or phrase that means one thing and is
used for referring to another thing in order to emphasize their similar qualities.’ MacMillan
Online Dictionary (2015)

Branch g

Peak f

Mountain d

Wave h

Torrent b

Trickle e

Chasm c

Desert a

2.

a. Branch
b. Trickle
c. Torrent
d. Chasm
e. Peak
f. Wave
g. Mountains
h. Desert

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Task 2 - These tasks look at how metaphor is used more widely in texts 2
The metaphor in which an issue is couched tells its own story. Since the economic crisis
began in 2007-08, the ubiquitous image has been a financial storm – a picture with two
implications. First, that this is an untamable, natural phenomenon to be endured, rather
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than – say – a fire, which might call for efforts to dampen flames, not to mention questions
about who lit the spark. Second, that this is a passing emergency which should soon be
forgotten. But today, as well as producing a battery of depressing statistics about the fall-
2
out from Europe's long recent recession, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red
Crescent Societies suggests a switch of frames: it talks of the "roots of the crisis" having
been "planted", roots which it insists will yield bitter growth for many years yet.

The crisis is a Storm (untamable1, natural phenomenon, passing)

Fire (dampen flames, lit the spark)

Plant (roots, planted, yield bitter2growth)

1thisis an adjective that normally describes an animal that cannot be

controlled; here it is used to describe the uncontrollable nature of storms.

2This
is a further adjectival metaphor of taste to suggest that the plant
grown is not good.

Conceptual Metaphors:
 The long years of European muddling through, from crisis to crisis, have never
addressed any of this. The single currency got out of the emergency room in 2012
when Mr Draghi promised to do "whatever it took" to shore up stricken banks, part
of an implicit bargain which also involved the south swallowing interminable
austerity.

The European single currency is a sick patient

Emergency room stricken swallowing (medicine)

*Shore up is used to describe the reinforcing of coastal/river banks after storms/heavy

rainfall. An example of a mixed metaphor

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The following are from: LAKOFF, G. AND JOHNSON, M. 2003. Metaphors we live by. Chicago:
University of Chicago Press.

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The world is fiddling as West Africa burns, and unless it acts much faster, the outbreak risks
spreading to surrounding regions. Sparks from it could lead to exports to more far-flung
places, perhaps even to major cities that lack decent public-health infrastructure. But
countries and the public must also realize that although action is needed urgently, the
commitments must be sustained until the outbreak has been stamped out, which could take
many months. The relatively low threat to developed countries must not distract or detract
from the pressing need to tackle the outbreak at its source.

This is an adaption of the alleged tale of the Roman emperor Nero doing nothing while the
city of Rome burned. It is used metaphorically to suggest someone is doing nothing when
they should be taking charge of a situation.

All linguistic metaphors related to fire (as is the first one) suggesting a conceptual metaphor
of ‘the Ebola virus is a fire’

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