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- A mixed metaphor is a succession of incongruous or ludicrous comparisons. Also known—playfully—as a mixaphor. Although many style guides condemn the use of mixed metaphors, in practice most of the objectionable combinations (as in the examples below) are actually clichés or dead metaphors.
www.thoughtco.com/what-is-a-mixed-metaphor-1691395
Oct 8, 2023 · Dead Metaphors vs. Mixed Metaphors. Dead metaphors and mixed metaphors are similar because they both are usually avoided by writers. A mixed metaphor, however, is a misuse of metaphoric language – it mixes two figurative phrases in a way which doesn’t logically make sense.
- Using Mixed Metaphors
- Examples of Mixed Metaphors
- Sources
In "Garner's Modern American Usage", Bryan A. Garner offers this classic example of a mixed metaphor from a speech by Boyle Roche in the Irish Parliament: This sort of mixed metaphor may occur when a speaker is so familiar with the figurative sense of a phrase ("smell a rat," "nip in the bud") that he fails to recognize the absurdity that results f...
"So now what we are dealing with is the rubber meeting the road, and instead of biting the bullet on these issues, we just want to punt.""[T]he bill is mostly a stew of spending on existing programs, whatever their warts may be.""A friend of mine, talking about the Democratic presidential candidates, tossed out a wonderful mixed metaphor: 'This is awfully weak tea to have to hang your hat on.'""The mayor has a heart as big as the Sahara for protecting 'his' police officers, and that is commendable. Unfortunately, he also often strips his gears by failing to engage the clutch when shiftin...Lynne Truss, "Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation", 2003 Chicago Tribune, cited by The New Yorker, August 13, 2007 The New York Times, January 27, 2009 Montgomery Advertiser, Alabama, cited by The New Yorker, November 16, 1987 Bob Herbert, "Behind the Curtain," The New York Times, November 27, 2007 Thomas L. Friedman, ...
- Richard Nordquist
Oct 19, 2022 · A dead metaphor is a figure of speech that is no longer connected to its original imagery. Also known as a frozen or historical metaphor, a dead metaphor is such an old expression that, unlike a regular metaphor, you have no idea what it’s comparing — even if you know exactly what it means.
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Sep 23, 2020 · Mixed metaphors are a combination of different metaphors. Dead metaphors are clichés – they’ve been used so often they’ve lost their impact. Let’s look at some common overused metaphors and their origins.
A mixed metaphor is a literary device that occurs when two or more dissimilar metaphors are fused to forge a comparison, typically creating a ludicrous effect. A mixed metaphor is not a common literary device that we often find in poetry or literature.
Mar 4, 2019 · Of course, like most literary devices, metaphors bomb when used incorrectly, confusing the reader or drawing attention to the writer's lack of skill. The two most common traps to be aware of when using metaphors are the cliché and the mixed metaphor.
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Jul 20, 2021 · Everyone (unless they’re an editor with no social skills) pretends it didn’t matter, and life goes on. But in writing, these matter. They sit there and taunt the reader to notice something is wrong, and usually they succeed. Let’s get into why mixed metaphors are a problem and how to avoid them.
