allegory
The use of symbols which may be interpreted to reveal a hidden, broader message,…The use of symbols which may be interpreted to reveal a hidden, broader message, usually a moral or political one, about real-world issues and occurrences; also, the interpretation of such symbols.
» Chess, allegory of a war, is a game of attack and defense.
carlosalberto · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
4 senses(rhetoric, uncountable)The use of symbols which may be interpreted to reveal a hidden, broader message, usually a moral or political one, about real-world issues and occurrences; also, the interpretation of such symbols.
Allegorie, Sinnbild
аллего́рияallegórija, иносказа́ниеinoskazánije
алего́ріяalehórija
(broadly, countable, uncountable)A picture, story, or other form of communication in which one or more characters, events, or places are used to reveal a hidden, broader message about real-world issues and occurrences.
Allegorie, Sinnbild
(broadly, countable, uncountable)A character or thing which symbolically represents someone or something else; an emblem, a symbol.
(broadly, countable, uncountable)A category that retains some of the structure of the category of binary relations between sets, representing a high-level generalization of that category.
- an expressive style that uses fictional characters and events to describe some subject by suggestive resemblances; an extended metaphor
- a visible symbol representing an abstract idea
- a short moral story (often with animal characters)
Examples
6 sentencesChess, allegory of a war, is a game of attack and defense.
The ship of fools was a popular allegory in medieval art and literature.
As an allegory of war, chess is a game of attack and defense.
ruШахматы как аллегория войны - это игра атаки и защиты. — carlosalberto
deSchach ist ein Angriffs- und Verteidungsspiele, gleichsam eine Allegorie des Krieges. — carlosalberto
It's an allegory.
ruЭто аллегория. — marafon
deDas ist eine Allegorie. — Babelball
That's an allegory. Do you know what that is?
ruЭто аллегория. Знаете, что это такое? — marafon
deDas ist eine Allegorie. Weißt du, was das ist? — mhr
Translations
9 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
By meaning 1
Origin
The noun is derived from Late Middle English allegorie (“symbolic interpretation; symbolisThe noun is derived from Late Middle English allegorie (“symbolic interpretation; symbolism; (Christianity) one of the four methods of interpreting the Bible”) + English -y (suffix forming abstract nouns denoting a condition, quality, or state). Allegorie is borrowed from Anglo-Norman allegorie and Middle French allegorie (“narrative with a hidden meaning; such a meaning or its interpretation”) (modern French allégorie), and directly from their etymon Latin allēgoria (“figurative or metaphorical language, allegory; parable”) (whence Late Latin allēgoria (“allegorical interpretation of the Bible”)), from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓λληγορῐ́ᾱ (ăllēgorĭ́ā, “figurative or metaphorical language”), probably from ἀλληγορος (allēgoros, “allegorical”) (though only attested in Byzantine Greek) + -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā, suffix forming feminine abstract nouns). Ἀλληγορος (Allēgoros) is derived from ᾰ̓́λλος (ắllos, “another; different”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- (“beyond; other”)) + ἠγόρ- (ēgór-, the imperfect stem of ἀγορεύω (agoreúō, “to speak in the assembly; to say, speak”)) + -ος (-os, suffix forming certain inflections of adjectives); and ἀγορεύω (agoreúō) from ᾰ̓γορᾱ́ (ăgorā́, “assembly; assembly place; market place; speech”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ger- (“flock, herd; to gather”)) + -εύω (-eúō, suffix forming verbs).
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Forms
plural: allegories| Singular | allegory |
|---|---|
| Plural | allegories |
regular
Synonyms
4 synonymsWord family
13 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable