What Is Metonymy? | Definition & Examples

Metonymy is a figure of speech in which a word is replaced with another word closely associated with the original concept, such as “love” with “heart.”

Metonymy is used to create vivid imagery, add layers of meaning to a text, and convey ideas in a concise way. It’s commonly used in literature, newspaper headlines, and everyday speech.

Metonymy examples
Swedish is my mother tongue.
The White House declined to comment.
Tom’s favorite dish is mac and cheese.
They had a Monet hanging on their wall, and they didn’t know.

The use of metonymy is common in literature and in everyday conversations, but it should be avoided in academic writing or professional communication.

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Metonymy is a rhetorical device (or trope) in which we refer to an idea or object by using another word that is related to it. The word that replaces the original one is called a metonym. For example, “suits” is a metonym for “business people.”

In literature, writers use metonymy to express an idea or thought in an original, poetic way that avoids repetition. For example, a writer might substitute a specific image for an abstract concept, like “cradle” to mean “birth.” This can help to add variety to their writing and make it more engaging.

However, metonymy is also common in everyday language, both written and spoken. In fact we often use metonymy in idiomatic phrases without noticing it. For example, we use metonymy when we ask someone “to lend a hand,” or when we refer to earning money as “putting bread on the table.”

Metonymy and synecdoche are both literary devices that use a word or phrase as a substitute for another word or phrase. However, they are not exactly the same.

While metonymy replaces a general idea or object with a related term, synecdoche uses a part of something to signify the whole (or vice versa, representing the whole with a part). With synecdoche, the relationship between the original word and its stand-in is much more precise: the stand-in is part of the word or idea it represents.

For example, referring to your car as “wheels” is synecdoche because wheels are a part of a car. On the other hand, “ride” is metonymy because it is a word associated with cars and driving in general, not a part of a car.

Because metonymy and synecdoche are so closely related, some sources consider synecdoche a subcategory of metonymy. However, there is no general consensus about this.

The table below contains some common metonyms.

You can test your understanding of the difference between metonymy and synecdoche with the worksheet below. Choose whether each sentence contains an example of metonymy or synecdoche

Do you want to know more about common mistakes, commonly confused words, or other language topics? Check out some of our other language articles full of examples and quizzes.