zoosemy
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
21
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The metaphorical use of animal names or animal-related terms to denote human qualities, e.g. chicken, sly fox, mother hen etc. as epithets for human individuals.
Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "It must be emphasised that in this case the working of the mechanism of zoosemy was so intense that already in the first half of the 16th century — in disparaging use — mongrel started to be used in the sense 'the offspring of parents of different nationalities or of high and low birth' (1542>1898)."
- "Migration is another aspect of social relations wherein zoosemy seems to have a notable presence, since animal metaphors can be an effective discursive strategy of othering, denigration and, in extreme cases, even dehumanization."