Britannica Sources used in this answer

How is synecdoche different from metonymy?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Louisa May Alcott: Little Women — figure of speech Front cover of Louisa May Alcott's classic novel *Little Women*.

While synecdoche and metonymy are both figures of speech that substitute one term for another, they function through different relationships between the words used.1

Synecdoche

Synecdoche relies on a part-to-whole relationship. It occurs when a part of something is used to represent the whole (e.g., "hired hands" for "workers" or "wheels" for a "car") or, less commonly, when the whole is used to represent a part (e.g., "society" for "high society").21

Metonymy

Metonymy relies on an associative relationship. It occurs when a word or concept is used to refer to something else that is closely related or associated with it, rather than being a literal part of it. For example, "crown" is used to represent a "king" or "queen," and "the White House" is used to refer to the "President".21

In short, synecdoche is a specific type of substitution based on physical inclusion (part/whole), whereas metonymy is a broader substitution based on general association or proximity.231