This paper explores a unique relationship between iconicity and metaphor: that seen in creative sign language, where iconic properties abound at all levels of linguistic representation. We use the idea of ‘iconic superstructure’ to consider the way that metaphoric meaning is generated through the iconic properties of creative sign language. We focus on the interaction between the overall contex...

A classical approach of modeling metaphoric expressions uses a source concept network that is mapped to a target concept network. Both networks are usually represented as algebras. We present a representation using the mathematically sound framework of anti-unification. We will interpret metaphors as a special case of analogical reasoning for which anti-unification was already successfully appl...

• Metaphoric or analogical terminology is common in clinical dermatology, dermoscopy and dermatopathology. • Metaphoric language in dermatology has been criticized for a perceived lack of clear definition and specificity, and non-metaphoric (descriptive) terms and diagnostic algorithms have attempted to be constructed. • Metaphors are pervasive in human language and appear to be deeply rooted i...

BACKGROUND Co-verbal gestures are crucial for communication. Neuroimaging studies suggest that the left frontal lobe may be especially important for processing metaphoric co-verbal gestures. However, so far, the specific functional relevance of the left frontal lobe in metaphoric (abstract sentence content) co-verbal gesture processing compared to iconic (concrete sentence content) co-verbal ge...

A metaphor is a figure of speech in which a subject is symbolic of another unrelated object. In the present study, we examined neural patterns associated with both novel unfamiliar and conventional familiar metaphoric processing, and how these patterns are modulated by affective valence. Prior to fMRI scanning, participants received a list of word pairs (novel unfamiliar metaphors as well as co...

The role of the two hemispheres in processing metaphoric language is controversial. While some studies have reported a special role of the right hemisphere (RH) in processing metaphors, others indicate no difference in laterality relative to literal language. Some studies have found a role of the RH for novel/unfamiliar metaphors, but not conventional/familiar metaphors. It is not clear, howeve...

Though metaphoric language comprehension has previously been investigated with event-related potentials, little attention has been devoted to extending this research from the monolingual to the bilingual context. In the current study, late proficient unbalanced Polish (L1)-English (L2) bilinguals performed a semantic decision task to novel metaphoric, conventional metaphoric, literal, and anoma...

According to the Conceptual Metaphor Theory, people understand abstract concepts depending on the activation of more concrete concepts, but not vice versa. The present research aims to investigate the role of directionality and automaticity regarding the activation of the conceptual metaphor "good is up". Experiment 1 tested the automaticity of the spatial-to-valence metaphoric congruency effec...

Subjects read target sentences preceded by either short or long context that induced either a metaphoric or a literal target reading. As had been found by Ortony, Schallert, Reynolds, and Antos (1978), metaphoric targets were comprehended about as quickly as literals when context was long, but more slowly than literals when context was short. The latter result may have been due to the failure o...