 ##  [Conceptual Metaphor](/index.php/conceptual-metaphor) 

  ##  [Conceptual Metaphor](https://humanitites.quantumdictionary.io/conceptual-metaphor-0) 

  
 [![Humanities & Arts Dictionary](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2026-01/Humanities%20%26%20Arts.png.webp?itok=4SMNHqFS)](/index.php/topic-specific-dictionaries/humanities-arts)


**Humanities &amp; Arts Dictionary**

 
Definition

A theoretical model in cognitive linguistics that explains how people understand and reason about abstract target domains by systematically mapping structures, inferences, and relations from more concrete source domains; these mappings are organized, partial, and can influence thought and communicative behavior independent of individual metaphorical expressions.