allegory
noun · verb
Simple meaning
The use of symbols which may be interpreted to reveal a hidden, broader message, usually a moral or political one, about real-world issues and occurrences.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
aluhgawreeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈæləɡɔɹi
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
uncountablerhetoric
The use of symbols which may be interpreted to reveal a hidden, broader message, usually a moral or political one, about real-world issues and occurrences; also, the interpretation of such symbols.
countableby extension
A picture, story, or other form of communication in which one or more characters, events, or places are used to reveal a hidden, broader message about real-world issues and occurrences.
countableby extension
A character or thing which symbolically represents someone or something else; an emblem, a symbol.
verb
transitive
To create an allegory (noun noun, sense 2.1) from (a character, an event or situation, etc.); also, to use one or more symbols to depict (a hidden, broader message about real-world issues and occurrences).
transitive
To interpret (a picture, story, or other form of communication) to reveal a hidden, broader message about real-world issues and occurrences.
intransitive
To interpret an allegory.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (uncountable, rhetoric) The use of symbols which may be interpreted to reveal a hidden, broader message, usually a moral or political one, about real-world issues and occurrences; also, the interpretation of such symbols.
Used this way, allegory is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in government or politics and ethics or values contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Government/politics
- Ethics/values
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.