LessonsThe Definition of Simile, Related Metaphorical Forms, and Its Four ElementsQuiz

In istiʿārah bi-l-kināyah (metaphor by allusion), the mushabbah is mentioned while the mushabbah bih is not stated directly. Instead, some distinctive attribute of the omitted comparison target is associated with the expressed subject.

وإذا المنية أنشبت أظفارها
And when death sinks in its claws.

Here al-maniyyah (death) is named, while the predatory creature to which it is likened is not. The image of “its claws” evokes that creature. The expression makes the sudden and inescapable grip of death vivid.

This placement of the expressed and omitted terms differs from explicit metaphor.

Opening interactive controls...

The form of metaphor by allusion

The Definition of Simile, Related Metaphorical Forms, and Its Four Elements

In istiʿārah bi-l-kināyah (metaphor by allusion), the mushabbah is mentioned while the mushabbah bih is not stated directly. Instead, some distinctive attribute of the omitted comparison target is associated with the expressed subject.

وإذا المنية أنشبت أظفارها
And when death sinks in its claws.

Here al-maniyyah (death) is named, while the predatory creature to which it is likened is not. The image of “its claws” evokes that creature. The expression makes the sudden and inescapable grip of death vivid.

This placement of the expressed and omitted terms differs from explicit metaphor.