Making sense of metonymy (and how to use it in your writing)

What is metonymy?

The definition of metonymy is “a figure of speech in which an object or concept is replaced with a related word or phrase.” It’s pronounced meh-TAA-nuh-mee. The word “metonymy” comes from the Greek word “metonymia,” which means “change of name.”¹

Examples of metonymy in everyday speech

Here are some examples of how metonymy is used in everyday speech:

• “The White House” is a metonym that refers to the President or the president’s administration.
• “The Crown” is a metonym that refers to the British royal family.
• “Hollywood” is a metonym that refers to the film industry or celebrities.
• “The Pentagon” is a metonym that describes the United States Department of Defense (the Department of Defense building is in the shape of a pentagon, but most people assume this is its actual name).
• “Suits” is a metonym that references businesspeople.
• “Wall Street” is a metonym that refers to the stock market.
• “Dish” is a metonym for a meal.
• “Hand” is a metonym for help.

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Examples of metonymy in literature and plays

Writers love using metonymy in their work. Here’s an example of a metonym that William Shakespeare used in his play Julius Caesar:

“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.”

In this quote, “ears” is the metonym. The speaker is not actually asking for people’s physical ears; instead, he is using “ears” as a metonym for attention.

Herman Melville used a metonym in his novel Moby Dick:

“The probability would be that he and his shipmates would never again remember it, on account of all hands gently subsiding to the bottom.”

In this passage, “hands” is the metonym. The author doesn’t mean that literal hands are subsiding to the bottom—he is referring to the men who were on the ship.

Why use metonymy in your writing?

You can use metonymy to add creative flair to your writing. It’s a great way to add imagery to your writing too. For example, if you’re telling a story that takes place in a corporate setting, writing “I entered the office and all I saw were suits” creates more vivid imagery than writing “I entered the office and all I saw were businessmen.” You’re nudging your reader to picture what the businessmen were wearing.

If you want to avoid repetition or make your writing more concise, metonymy can help. If you’re writing about the British royal family, instead of repeating “the British royal family” multiple times, you can refer to them as “the Crown” instead.

Metonymy versus synecdoche

Metonymy is frequently confused with synecdoche.They’re both figures of speech, but they still have slight differences. In synecdoche, a part of a thing is used to refer to the entire thing. For example, one might say, “Do you like my new wheels?” when they purchase a new car. “Wheels” is a synecdoche for “car,” since wheels are a part of the car. With metonymy, a concept substitutes a word. For example, in the sentence, “The press won’t stop writing about the celebrity,” the metonym “the press” replaces journalists and reporters.

Metonymy versus metaphor

Both metonymy and metaphors use figures of speech, so it may be confusing to tell them apart. However, metaphors make a direct comparison between two unrelated things. Here’s an example of a metaphor:

• My mother was a Broadway star.

Of course, no one is actually a star. “Star” is a metaphor for someone who is famous. Metonyms are different because they use a related concept to replace a word, not an entirely random word or concept.

Are you interested in learning more about literary devices? Learn what allegories are and how you can incorporate them into your writing.

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