Which statement best describes a metaphor?

• A. Uses like or as to compare
• B. Describes a sound
• C. Repeats initial consonants
• D. Implied comparison between two unlike things

Answer: (D)

Metaphor is an implied comparison between two unlike things. It says one thing is another, without using like or as, so the reader pictures the idea in a vivid, direct way. For example, saying “Time is a thief” suggests time steals moments, not that time is literally a thief, and it does this by naming time as something entirely different. That direct, non-literal linkage—an implied comparison between two unlike things—is what defines a metaphor.

Using like or as to compare would be a simile, which is a different figure of speech. Describing a sound is not about comparing two things, and repeating initial consonants is alliteration, a sound device rather than a metaphor.