the use of a word or phrase, when you refer to something using the name of something else that it is closely related to. For example, journalists often use the expression ‘The White House’ to mean the President of the US.
Synonyms and related words
Types of word or phrase
acrostic
adjacency pair
Americanism
metonymy
noun uncountable linguistics
US /meˈtɑnəmi/
DEFINITIONS1
1
the use of a word or phrase, when you refer to something using the name of something else that it is closely related to. For example, journalists often use the expression “The White House” to mean the President of the U.S.