%0 Journal Article
%@ 1092-6488
%A Rubio-Fernandez, P
%A Wearing, C
%A Carston, R
%D 2015
%F discovery:1460503
%J Metaphor and Symbol
%N 1
%P 24 - 40
%T Metaphor and Hyperbole: Testing the Continuity Hypothesis
%U https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1460503/
%V 30
%X In standard Relevance Theory, hyperbole and metaphor are categorized together as loose uses of language, on a continuum with approximations, category extensions and other cases of loosening/broadening of meaning. Specifically, it is claimed that there are no interesting differences (in either interpretation or processing) between hyperbolic and metaphorical uses (Sperber & Wilson, 2008). In recent work, we have set out to provide a more fine-grained articulation of the similarities and differences between hyperbolic and metaphorical uses and their relation to literal uses (Carston & Wearing, 2011, 2014). We have defended the view that hyperbolic use involves a shift of magnitude along a dimension which is intrinsic to the encoded meaning of the hyperbole vehicle, while metaphor involves a multi-dimensional qualitative shift away from the encoded meaning of the metaphor vehicle. In this article, we present three experiments designed to test the predictions of this analysis, using a variety of tasks (paraphrase elicitation, self-paced reading and sentence verification). The results of the study support the view that hyperbolic and metaphorical interpretations, despite their commonalities as loose uses of language, are significantly different.
%Z This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Metaphor and Symbol on 20 Dec 2014, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/10926488.2015.980699