Metaphor is a figurative use of language that illuminates our understanding of abstract concepts through their depiction in concrete terms . In contrast to the traditional theory, in which metaphors are regarded as mere figures of speech that compare words to ornament their presentation rather than to enhance their meaning, Lakoff and Johnsons Contemporary Theory (1980) holds that metaphors define and reflect deeply entrenched cultural understandings. In My love is a rose, for example, the word rose expresses a relationship that is both beautiful and thorny but does not suggest that love is a plant .
The Contemporary Theory understands metaphors as conceptual entities that are based in the shared experiences of a given group of people and that they structure the language that these individuals speak. According to this theory, a metaphor associates two mental concepts or domains whereby the first one is understood and experienced in terms of the second. For example, in the conceptual metaphor argument is war the first domain argument and its attendant attributes, is understood and experienced in terms of the second domain and its attributes, war. That is, argument is understood as a war or kind of verbal battle. In other words, metaphors construct meaning rather than merely embellishing it, often within everyday language (ibid.).