Which term means substituting a name with something closely associated?

• A. Metonymy
• B. Metaphor
• C. Apostrophe
• D. Personification

Answer: (A)

Substituting a name with something closely associated is metonymy. In metonymy, you refer to a thing by naming something closely linked to it, rather than the thing itself. For example, “the White House announced new policy” uses the building as a stand-in for the president and his administration, and “Hollywood is buzzing” stands for the film industry. This differs from a metaphor, which makes a direct, imaginative comparison between two unrelated things (like time is a thief); from apostrophe, which involves addressing someone or something absent or nonresponsive as if it could reply; and from personification, which gives human qualities to nonhuman things.