Metaphorical conceptualization from an ad hoc source concept

Abstract

In this paper we explore the differences between several types of temporary conceptualization and the different ways of representing them verbally, and claim that, in the most creative or extended cases of metaphor, utterance interpretation involves a temporary conceptualization or temporary concept of the target domain. Unlike non-metaphorical temporary conceptualizations, metaphorical conceptualization requires a mechanism of cross-domain mapping (from source to target domain) and, in many of these cases, the source domain is already a temporary conceptualization of an ad hoc category, an ad hoc concept, and thus their interpretation involves a recursive temporary conceptualization.