Literal Metaphor



Alice uses a figure of speech. Bob reiterates the usual metaphorical meaning. Alice says no, she meant it literally.

There's also a variation in which Bob questions the metaphor, and Alice responds sarcastically that she meant it literally. See also Visual Pun for when a play on words is given literal visualization. Related to Not Hyperbole, where what seems like an exaggeration isn't, and Made From Real Girl Scouts, where the literal meaning is true... and you really wish it wasn't.

Compare Double Meaning.

If you want a clitoral metaphor, that would be Country Matters.

Advertising

 * Hey, how 'bout a nice Hawaiian Punch?

Anime and Manga
"Freude trinken alle Wesen An dem Brüsten der Natur Alle Guten, alle Bösen Folgen ihrer Rosenspur Kusse gab sie uns und Reben Einen Freund geprüft im Tod ''Wollust ward dem Wurm gegeben Und der Cherub steht vor Gott"
 * Revolutionary Girl Utena
 * Adolescence of Utena: "Utena is the vehicle through which Anthy escapes from Ohtori."
 * In the show, Nanami thinks she's (literally) laid an egg and asks her brother how he feels about girls who lay eggs. "Do you know why we've been able to live together so happily? It's because you aren't the type of girl who lays eggs."
 * In Rocket Girls, Yukari is offered a job that's "so simple even a monkey could do it." Yes, monkeys have gone into space.
 * A variation occurs in an episode of Azumanga Daioh, when Chiyo, overwhelmed at the preparations for the Culture Fest, begs someone to turn back the clock before it's too late. Osaka takes this as literal instruction.
 * In Neon Genesis Evangelion, the last half of the episode is set to a backdrop of Beethoven's "Ode to Joy"., they sing a part with two of these metaphors:

Arts

 * Guerrilla street artist Banksy used the phrase "Eat the Rich" in one of his works with a much more literal slant.

Comic Books
"Lady Blackhawk: You drive. I call shotgun. Gypsy: But Shiva's already in that seat... Lady Blackhawk: No. I mean -- I call shotgun."
 * From Birds of Prey #93:


 * In Scott Pilgrim, Ramona says that her last ex-boyfriend Gideon has a way of getting inside her head. Scott agrees, prompting Ramona to tell him that she means Gideon has a way of literally invading her subconscious.
 * A variant, making it part of the mystery, in a Mickey Mouse comics story that casts Mickey as a professional detective: A man accused of destroying evidence against the local mob boss is in a mentally not very stable condition, and some of his ravings include the mention of "the monkey on my back". It turns out this refers to the actual pet monkey of the mob boss, who likes to jump down to the backs of intruders and tear them with his claws.
 * Daredevil occasionally makes use of metaphors that use the word "devil" this way when he's in that kind of mood, like how in one story he tells the fugitive Leland Owlsley (who had promised to go straight, but couldn't) that it was "time to give the devil his due".

Fan Works

 * Shantae asks Rottytops to "lend me a hand" in the fan art shown here, and Rotty takes it too literally.
 * Obviously the artist took inspiration from a similar scene in Toy Story.

Films -- Animation

 * In Chicken Run, Rocky and Ginger are trying to escape from the chicken-pie-making machine. When they get pushed into one chamber, Rocky exclaims, "Whew! It's like an oven in here..." A second later, gas flames shoot up on all sides and the door starts to close.
 * Shrek: "You're on fire, donkey!"

Films -- Live-Action
""I think Alan Swan is beneath us!" "Of course he's beneath us. He's an actor!" "No! I think Alan Swann is beneath us right now!""
 * It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World - yes, it is.
 * Happens in the film My Favorite Year. Alan Swan is drunk, and hanging off a building by a fire hose.

"Paul: He can't just walk out on us like this! John: Can't he? He's done it, son!"
 * A Hard Day's Night has another variant:

"Scott: Cooper, the hat! The hat! The hat is on fire! Cooper: "We don't need no water let the motha..." Scott: I'm not kidding! Look! Cooper: Oh, holy shit!"
 * In Village of the Damned (the original version), the protagonist focuses on the words "brick wall" to hide how he plans to kill the psychic children. We see their attempts to break through his Psychic Static as a literal brick wall, which slowly falls to pieces as they force their way in.
 * In Star Trek V, Kirk at first assumes Spock is speaking metaphorically when he says that Sybok is his brother.
 * A nice example in Keeping the Faith, when Bonnie Rose is boasting about daughter Rose's professional achievements to the hot new Rabbi: "My mum does all my PR," Rose explains. "I know what you mean. Mine too," says the Rabbi. "No, I mean really. My mum's firm does all my PR."
 * In Eurotrip, Scotty and Cooper are at the Vatican and have managed to sneak into a room with the Pope's clothes. Cooper puts on the Pope's hat and accidentally sets it on fire but doesn't notice. This little exchange takes place:

"Miranda: How did your husband die? Mrs. Doubtfire: He was quite fond of the drink. It was the drink that killed him. Miranda: How awful, he was an alcoholic? Mrs. Doubtfire: No, he was hit by a Guinness truck, so it was quite literally the drink that killed him."
 * This happens in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Searching in a crypt under a library (which was an old converted church), Indiana Jones says, "Rats." Dr. Schneider asks what's wrong, and he repeats his statement, pointing out hundreds of rats moving around in the tunnel.
 * In Hocus Pocus, the witches sing "I Put a Spell on You" to a crowd of party-goers. It puts them into a trance.
 * Happens in Mrs. Doubtfire.


 * Occurs in Bugsy Malone. One of Fat Sams workers says he can't stop Dandy Dan's gang because "he's all tied up" (he's actually tied up). Fat Sam replies "I don't care how busy you are."
 * In Time, with its premise of using the time of your life as currency, regularly features phrases such as "spending time", "out of time", and "give me a minute" used in a literal sense.
 * Airplane! as a visual gag, when someone is warned about the shit hitting the fan. Cut to a view of the fan.

Jokes

 * What did the Sphinx say when Oedipus answered his riddle? "Motherfucker!"
 * Stephen Wright: "I wondered why the Frisbee was getting bigger, and then it hit me."
 * Vampires suck.
 * Werewolves bite.
 * A man walks into a bar. He says "ouch".
 * A common joke about Mail Order Brides is that a literal Girl in a Box turns up in the post as Human Mail.

Literature
"You keep using the phrase "bite my head off." Now when you say "bite my head off," I take it I can assume that it is actually some kind of metaphorical statement, implying that you'll shout at me, perhaps rather angrily? Bite your head off. Then crunch it. Then swallow it."
 * In the book Anansi Boys, is trapped in a cave with the thoroughly annoying . The former warns the latter to not be irritating or he will bite his head off.

"The word "impossible" is not in my dictionary. In fact, everything between "herring" and "marmalade" appears to be missing."
 * Discworld
 * The Truth, about the Discworld's first newspaper, begins with someone yelling "Stop the presses!"... because the cart carrying the printing press in question has come loose and is careening down the street.
 * In Going Postal, Moist's reaction to seeing the once-proud Post Office is "Oh, shit!" Mr Pump reproves him for his language, but he explains it was a statement of fact: the place is filled with pigeon droppings. Then he finds out
 * Inverted in Death Masks: Dresden tells Molly she's sounding all grown up, and Molly snarks that "the breast fairy came to visit and everything". Quoth Dresden, to the reader, "Some might find it significant that it took me a second to realize she wasn't being literal about the faerie. Sometimes I hate my life".
 * Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency had Eskimo Words for Snow gag running into this:


 * A Brick Joke; earlier, when his secretary had tried to put the dictionary in a desk drawer it was too thick, so she ripped a handful of pages out.
 * In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Tom Riddle tells Wormtail he will get to "perform a task most [his] followers would give their right hand to perform" - little does Wormtail know that to perform the task you literally have to sacrifice your right hand as a flesh offering for Dark Magic.

Live-Action TV
"Sophia: Then it happened, what every runner dreads. I hit the wall. Dorothy: Aww, you ran out of steam. Sophia: No, I actually hit a wall!"
 * This is a regular gag for Sophia on The Golden Girls:

"Joe: Who won the arm-wrestling match? Helen: Fay licked me. Joe: She beat you, huh? Helen: No, she licked me. She literally licked my hand. I was so startled, she caught me off-guard, pinned me to the table."
 * Spoofed on Robot Chicken when she describes her encounter with a high school basketball team: They run a (model) train on her and she gets their (basket)balls in her face.
 * Used in the Wings episode "Plane Nine From Nantucket":

"J.D.: We could have sex again. Elliot: Bite me. J.D.: Oh, come on, I was kidding! It's a joke! Elliot: No, I mean it. Like you did last night. (takes off her shirt and throws it at him) Come bite me."
 * A recurring element on Sabrina the Teenaged Witch
 * Scrubs put an interesting spin on this one:

"Emerson: Your book was a bomb. Napoleon: Who are you to criticize my life's work?! Emerson: (deadpan) Your book. Was a bomb. It exploded."
 * Babylon 5: Lord Kiro mentions that his aunt once told him he would be "killed by shadows". He doesn't think it makes any sense. Pity no one told him about that ancient alien race who call themselves The Shadows...
 * Pushing Daisies
 * "Smell of Success":

"Emerson: That's bat crap. Olive: It's a frickin' convent. Show some respect. Emerson: (pointing at the white-streaked wall of the bell tower) I'm showing you bat crap."
 * "Bad Habits":

"Buffy: [My mom] saw these scores, and her head spun around and exploded. Giles: I've been living on the hellmouth too long... that was metaphorical, wasn't it?"
 * Buffy the Vampire Slayer
 * Inverted:

"Spike: Hey, picked up a tail... Giles: Yes, just a little, uh... Hurts when I sit. Spike I mean someone's following us."
 * A somewhat different kind of inversion occurs in "A New Man", after Giles has been turned into a demon:

"There's more than one way to skin a cat. And I happen to know that's factually true."
 * Played straight by the Mayor:

"Rachel: I wish you could all feel what’s it like to have your hearts ripped out. Anyanka: Wish granted."
 * Part of the modus operandi of Vengeance Demons.

"Nick: She got a frog in her throat. Kevin: There is a bug going around. Nick: No, she was swimming in the swamp and got an actual frog in her throat. She's at the hospital right now getting a frog-ectomy."
 * Arrested Development
 * One doctor does this a few times, saying that "we lost him" when a patient escaped, "it looks like he's dead" to refer to a patient covered in blue paint, and "he's going to be all right" after.
 * In another episode, Michael repeatedly asked his imprisoned father about finances, only to be told "There's money in the banana stand." Michael assumes that just meant that the sales from the banana stand would always be there but really.
 * In one episode of The Gruen Transfer, "The Pitch" had two advertising agencies competing to "sell ice to Eskimos".
 * In Jonas:

"Dean: Where'd you serve? Guy: Fallujah -- two tours. Got back a little over a year ago. Takes one to know one. Where'd you serve? Dean: Hell. Guy: No, seriously. Dean: Seriously. Hell."
 * In one episode of Spaced Mike walks off in the pub saying he has to "point the pink pistol at the porcelain firing range". When he gets back he is carrying an actual pink pistol.
 * In Supernatural:

"Russ: It drives me round the bend."
 * Doctor Who
 * In one of the Sontaran episodes of Nu Who, when describing the ATMOS GPS system while driving:

"Maj. Thornberg: What was the weapon you used? Col. O'Neill: (innocently) Weapon? Maj. Thornberg: Our cameras saw some sort of weapon. Col. O'Neill: Oh. Well, it's hard to say. Maj. Thornberg: Some sort of state secret? Col. O'Neill: No, just difficult to pronounce."
 * And again in "Flesh and Stone", the Doctor tells Amy to "get a grip"...
 * In the new Battlestar Galactica, Baltar asks the "imaginary" Head Six what she really is. Her response?.
 * In an episode of I Dream of Jeannie, Major Healey has invited everyone to a party in his completely bare apartment. He tells Major Nelson that new furniture would be installed "in the blink of an eye. Um, where did you say Jeannie was?"
 * From the Stargate SG-1 episode "1969":


 * It was a Goa'uld Zat'nik'tel, for reference...

""Look, when I named this project Icarus, I never expected an actual dude with flaming wings falling from the sky. This is totally awesome. I love life.""
 * Smallville
 * One is lampshaded in the episode "Icarus". After Hawkman jumps from a window with his wings on fire, General Wilson points out that he had intended the name to be a metaphor for Clark's fall from grace. Or to use the paraphrasing given here:

"Pa Kent: You can't do that! (the doctor is outraged) No, I mean you literally can't do that."
 * In an earlier episode, when Clark Kent catches a life-threatening fever, a doctor tries to give him a shot:

"Pete: Tracy's phoning it in. Liz: So what else is new? (cut to show a phone where Tracy should be) Tracy: Line!"
 * Being Human (UK): Annie is talking to another ghost, who mentions that her death was "a terrible shock". Annie replies, "Well, I should think it would be!" The other ghost then explains that she meant it literally; she died by electrocution.
 * In one Charmed episode, the Seer says she sees nothing. Her master assumes she failed to see the future, but she means, "Nothing. No Life. No World."
 * In Thirty Rock:

"Jack: And I'm not speaking in a metaphor, I mean literally. I am going to fight the nominees."
 * During a song at the 2006 Oscars, Jack Black bolsters Will Ferrell by telling him they may not win any awards, but they'll win "the ultimate fight".

"Toby: Oscar's really gay. Michael: Exactly. Toby: I mean for real. Michael: Yeah, I know. Toby: No, he's attracted to other men. Michael: Okay, little too far, crossed the line. Toby: Okay, I am telling you Oscar is an actual homosexual."
 * "Gay Witch Hunt", the third-season premiere of the U.S. edition of The Office.

"Alex: You've got to help me! Crumbs: I wish I could, but my hands are tied. Alex: You don't believe me either? Crumbs: No, I mean my hands are tied. (shows Alex he's handcuffed to the table)"
 * In Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, reference to the manure Hercules cleared from the Augean Stables has someone say "Holy--" "Exactly."
 * In the pilot of Mr. Sunshine, after, they are just proceeding in opposite directions when the missing elephant turns up.
 * Wizards of Waverly Place:

"Blackadder: What's it called Baldrick? "The Vomiting Cavalier"? George: That's not supposed to be vomit; it's dabs of light. Baldrick: No, it's vomit."
 * Mark's discussion in Parks and Recreation of why he decided to turn his life around: "I hit rock bottom that night. I mean I literally fell to the bottom of a pit and hit a rock. I remember laying there thinking, there's probably a good reason why I'm down here. And then I remember thinking I need morphine."
 * In Blackadder IV, Episode "Captain Cook", Baldrick paints a picture.

"We're tearing down this place tonight... literally! We're gonna set this sleepy town alight... literally!"
 * The Viking song from Horrible Histories:

Music
"Murdoc: It can be very distracting when you've got six or seven decomposing zombies stuck up your chimney flue. 2D: We've got a chimney flue? Murdoc: I'm speaking metaphorically, D. I'm using the analogy of the chimney flue to describe the, um, passageways of our flowing creativity. The zombies, in this case, are used as a metaphor for blockages to the airways, figuratively speaking. 2D: Really? Murdoc: No. There really are about six undead carcasses stuck up the studio chimney. 2D: Oh. Well, that'd explain the smell."
 * "At your command, before you here I stand, my heart is in my hand -- yeucch!" from "The Masochism Tango".
 * Variation in Gorillaz's We Are the Dury:


 * "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Albuquerque" does this in two places. Once, where a guy sarcastically says, "Noooo, I want you to cut off my arms and legs with chainsaws!", and another time, when another guy says "Bite me."

Newspaper Comics

 * Calvin and Hobbes: Several of Calvin's Imagine Spots involve this. Many other comics have since picked up on this and done it ad nauseum.
 * In an early Garfield strip, the protagonist wakes up and steps out of bed, not realizing it's at the edge of the table, which he falls off of. Jon frantically asks what happens, and Garfield replies, "I got up on the wrong side of bed."
 * From The Wizard of Id, this strip takes the term "hung jury" a little too far.

Puppet Shows

 * Tons of jokes on The Muppet Show involve Literal Metaphor. In fact, if one were to say that on the show, you would be accurate in predicting that one character would ask if he means that there are a lot of them, only to be shown thousands of pounds of joke books.
 * This extends to a number of other Muppet works. The Muppet Movie, for example, features jokes about "starting off with a bang", "drinks on the house", and a "fork in the road".

Radio

 * In the Doctor Who audio drama "The Whispering Forest", Turlough and Nyssa are wandering through tunnels, and Turglough says the hairs on the back of his neck are sticking up. Nyssa assumes he means the caves are spooky, but he actually means they're filled with static electricity.

Tabletop Games
"Humans do not understand the nature of crime on Nigerian campuses. They do not understand why it seems so hard to fight. I did not understand, until I became Noble; until I could see it. The gangs are not packs of rogues. They are not criminals. They are a hydra. Cut off one head and two more grow. This is not a metaphor. This is not a verbal device. They are a hydra. I have seen it rage with my own two eyes."
 * Nobilis
 * One of the bits of flavor text:

"The stone was as heavy as my sins. That's not a metaphor, not exactly. That's how heavy my mistress had made it."
 * Being a game about Anthropomorphic Personifications in an animistic world, this comes up constantly. The corebook also discusses an infectious laugh (it spreads to anyone who hears it, and makes them keep laughing until they pass out from lack of oxygen), and one of the supplements contains this little gem:


 * Dungeons & Dragons has a subtle one with the spell detect thoughts, which allows the caster a brief look at what the subject is thinking, and has the Material Component of a single copper piece. That means, in effect, the caster gives the subject "a penny for your thoughts", literally.

Video Games
"Havoc: Cow. Sydney: ... PIG! Havoc: No, cow. (points) Cow: MOO!"
 * Something similar happens in Grim Fandango, with Glottis complaining that being fired is like they reached into his chest, tore out his heart, and tossed it into the woods, while doing exactly that to himself. This is rather too serious for Manny to bother questioning the odd choice of metaphor or why he's bothering to act it out literally at the same time.
 * Evil Genius has a brainwashing device for restoring a minion's smarts. How does it restore smarts, you ask? It sucks the patient's brain out through their ear, washes it with a special chemical concoction, then sticks it back in again.
 * Command & Conquer: Renegade had a cutscene where Havoc is escaping from a Nod compound with Sydney Mobius, who is driving the truck. They start arguing, and Havoc then calmly says "cow". She blows up, assuming he called her a cow. A little more urgently, he points forward, "No, cow!" They end up almost hitting an actual cow crossing the road.


 * The bloody mess trait/perk from the Fallout series leaves a literal bloody mess of organs whenever you kill an enemy if you have it.
 * Bridget from Guilty Gear is a warrior who uses a yo-yo as a weapon, and her Fatality is a very literal interpretation of a "shoot the moon"; she literally propels her foe into space, causing said foe to crash-land on the moon.

Web Comics
"Eastwood: Oh, I assure you I'm pissing myself with fear. Virus: Well, I wouldn't go that far. Rogue: I would. Just noticed. Watch your step there. Virus: Oohh, right, NOT a metaphor."
 * In an early episode of Questionable Content, Marten describes his job as being "the office bitch". This is his official job title.
 * One patron in Unshelved runs into a problem like this when his girlfriend wants to close the book on their relationship.
 * In Finder's Keepers, Death sends Cailyn Asher a knife after Card asks for her (Death's) help. When Cailyn, Card, and Lady Scarring examine the knife later, Scarring calls it "the cutting edge." Cailyn of course asks what it is the cutting edge of, only to be told that the knife is the Cutting Edge, and it literally cuts theory from reality.
 * This strip from Exterminatus Now.

"Dan: (with ears on fire) Whoah... Hey Lexsi... my ears are burning! Alexsi: (not looking) I'm sure they are, Dan..."
 * Dan and Mab's Furry Adventures can be literal at times:

"Sabine: It's hard, but sometimes, I need to make a sacrifice in order to maintain our love. Roy: Like dressing up for him? Sabine: No, I meant a literal sacrifice. I have a desecrated altar waiting for your corpse in the next room. We should get like nine months of evil happiness by eating your heart. Twelve, if you're a virgin."
 * Everyday Heroes
 * Jane confesses to her neighbor Joan that she used to be a villain. When Joan expresses doubt, Jane assures her it's true; "Been there, done that, got the T-shirt!" And to prove it, she shows Joan the T-shirt. (Also a Shout-Out to Narbonic.)
 * Also, it's not polite to say "don't get all bent out of shape" to a man with a spinal injury.
 * The Order of the Stick
 * Celia's ex-boyfriend is caught "slipping the wood" to some dryad hussy. At least it was a potted wood.
 * Strip #349:

"Roy: Hu... I always thought the "revolving door afterlife" was just a metaphor..."
 * Strip #487:

"Bureaucratic Deva: Mr. Greenhilt, we do things "by the book" around here -- and it just so happens that the book in question is 100 feet tall and alight with holy fire --"
 * And #490:

"Sabine: I want a nice, safe, reliable mass-murderer that I can depend on. Like you! Nale: Oh really? Why don't you go chase after him, then? Sabine: Nale, you know I love you. I didn't-- Nale: No, I mean literally. Go chase after him. He's escaping."
 * In #757 ("Something Blue"), Tarquin mentions that some of his previous wives got cold feet before the marriage. The flashback reveals that it was quite literal.
 * Done again in strip #794. Sabine apparently enjoyed making out with Elan in an inversion of All Girls Want Bad Boys, and...

"Butler: Madam, I thing you should know he is undressing you with his eyes."
 * Sluggy Freelance
 * What is either Bun-Bun himself or Gwynn's internal representation of Bun-Bun mocks her current problems (possessed by a demon, imprisoned in a sort of fantasy world within her mind) by playing the world's smallest violin. Then he drops it down his ear.
 * Elsewhere, the invention of the Chick Magnet.
 * In the Years of Yarncraft game, Torg was once handed his ass by the Forest Yetis of Black Rook Caverns. First literally, and then figuratively too in all likehood.
 * Torg negotiates with Eugene with the help of Mr. Franklin in his wallet.
 * A page of the webcomic Real Life Fiction, aptly titled "Too Literal", has a cold medecine that "may cause drow-siness".
 * Done occasionally in Sinfest by playing off sexual euphemisms, such as "wax my missile" and "sowing wild oats."
 * From Hark a Vagrant: Cry "Havoc!" and let slip the dogs of war!
 * This Skin Horse comic does it with a metaphor that doesn't even exist.
 * This is a commonly used punchline in Penny Arcade.
 * In Meat Shield, Leonid the pseudo-lich once did a bit of soul-searching. Since at the time he was a disembodied head that had been stuffed inside his Soul Jar, this didn't take very long. (For that matter, the fact that this particular phylactery is indeed a jar may fall into Literal Metaphor too.)
 * Gunnerkrigg Court had Coyote and Renard referring to Annie as "fire-headed girl" and telling her "there's a fire in you... fire that belonged to your mother!"—repeatedly. She took all these mentions as cringe-worthy attempts at being poetic they seem to be..
 * In Lowroad, when Giselle was followed by her (deservedly) Unlucky Childhood Friend, Garon:


 * Pitch Black, on friendly fire.
 * In this Dork Tower, Carson chases inspiration... and catches one.
 * The Argyle Sweater has a lot of these - like Shotgun Wedding on this page.
 * Wrong Hands likes this trope:
 * There are five Literal Metaphors in "lives of quiet desperation": squeaking by, pecking away, keeping its head above water, clamming up, and sticking his neck out.
 * "idiomatic classic (an open book)" has fourteen Literal Metaphors, including the titular open book.

Web Original

 * Atop the Fourth Wall: Where bad comics burn. This is usually a figure of speech referring to the comic being critically roasted, but on three occasions thus far he has literally set the comics on fire once he's finished reviewing them.
 * JesuOtaku often says metaphorical-sounding things in her anime reviews immediately before showing clips of those exact things happening—for instance, that one villain crushes the heroes' lives like marbles, or that another abandons the goals for which his sister sacrificed everything and screws her.
 * Transolar Galactica's first episode revolves around Captain Trigger ordering his helmsman to steer to the "second star to the right, straight on 'til morning".

Western Animation
"Villain: The ancient scrolls said its power shone like a lantern... We always assumed it was a metaphor. Stroker: Yeah... I guess it must have seemed a lot cooler before they invented flashlights."
 * Used in Stroker and Hoop to turn protecting the sword of the fire lotus into a Shaggy Dog Story, when all it did was light up.

"Leela: All right, cool your jets, hotshot. Fry: C'mon Leela, why won't you go out with me? We both know there's something there! Leela: No, I mean cool your jets. You're melting Bender's face."
 * Futurama:
 * An example from when the crew are floating in space collecting Chronotons:

"Zoidberg: Ladies and germs... (rimshot) Zoidberg: What? That wasn't a joke! I was addressing Professor Staphylococcus over there!"
 * And another when Zoidberg is trying to do standup:

"Barney: Hey look, Fred. The volcano's flipping it's lid!"
 * The Flintstones
 * Done in the episode in which Barney Rubble and Fred Flintstone meet Dr. Sinister.

"Lisa: I like him! He's smart, he's sensitive, he's clearly not obsessed with his physical appearance -- Homer: My ears are burning. Lisa: Uh, I wasn't talking about you, Dad. Homer: No, my ears are really burning. I wanted to see inside so I lit a Q-Tip."
 * The Simpsons:
 * When Lisa is talking about guest-star Jay Sherman:

"Louie: Hey, I thought you said Troy McClure was dead. Tony: No, what I said was: "He sleeps with the fishes". You see... Louie: Uh, Tony, please, no. I just ate a whole plate of dingamagoo..."
 * And another when members of the Legitimate Businessmen's Social Club catch sight of Troy McClure.

"Man: Wow, Lois Griffin. Hey, I love your act! Nice melons. Peter: Hey, listen pal! Lois: Peter, I'm holding melons. (she's holding two watermelons) Peter: Oh. Man: And her hooters ain't bad either. Peter: Now hang on a second there! Lois: Peter, I'm holding hooters! (she has two owls perched on her arm) Peter: Oh, sorry. Man: No problem. (beat) Your wife's hot! Peter: All right, that's it!"
 * This one from Family Guy:

"Phineas: You're on fire, Candace! Candace: Yay. (Beat) I'm not actually on fire, am I? Buford: Nah, you're good."
 * In another episode, Peter is trying to organize Stewie's first birthday party but one of the only things he could find was a "big-ass piñata"; pan over to show a large papier-mâché butt. Brian responds "I sure hope candy comes out of that."
 * Phineas and Ferb:
 * Used a couple of times in the episode "Comet Kermillian". While at the park, Candace's screams of "I have Squirrels in My Pants!" are misinterpreted by a couple of performers, who think she's referring to her crazy dance moves. Then the squirrels get out, and one of the guys comments, "We just got served." Later on, when steaks are falling from the sky, the same guy catches one and comments, "We keep getting served."
 * Parodied in "Let's Take a Quiz".

"Doofensmirtz: I'm not speaking metaphorically, The platypus controlling me is underneath the table!"
 * In "Brain Drain", Dr. Doofenshmirtz ends up busting a rap about being controlled by Perry the Platypus turning his mind-control device against him. Vanessa's friends all think "There's a Platypus Controlling Me" is a metaphor for "whatever's keeping you down".

"Rudy: I'd try the Cockfight. Archer: A cockfight? Charles: It's the name of a gay bar. Rudy: But they do have actual cockfights there. Charles: Latinos... you take the bad with the good. (later, in The Cockfight) Archer: Let me buy you a drink. Ramon: Why don't you buy him one? He could use one. (pan to huge Hispanic guy crying over a dead rooster) Archer: Why don't we all have one, and... (notices Ramon is gone) (still later) Rudy: Look at slut just getting home! Charles: Well, I guess our advice worked. Archer: No! It didn't! Ramon blew me off. Rudy: Then where were you all night? Archer: Way the Christ out in the Everglades, burying some Dominican guy's rooster! Charles: Fun! (beat) Archer: Wha... Charles: Oh, you meant literally. Archer: Yes!"
 * In retaliation to people telling him not to make a mountain out of a molehill, Doofenshmirtz tried to do it literally in "At the Car Wash".
 * When Doofenshmirtz was told he didn't have a green thumb in "Moon Farm", he took it literally and bought a can of green paint to make himself green. Ironically, because of how he held the can, his thumbs weren't painted. Only later, as he explained his plan to Perry, Doof finally understood the metaphor.
 * Double Subverted and played straight in the same Archer episode. Charles and Rudy are two gay guys trying to help Archer seduce a gay spy named Ramon:

"Malory: And is Krieger...hard at work? Archer: He literally might be, yes."
 * In the episode Lo Scandalo, Kreiger is called in to dispose of a corpse in Malory's apartment.

"Mr. Waterman: Where's my beard? Mrs. Waterman: Right here. (Beat, then holds up a Santa beard)"
 * Marvin the Martian's "Earth-shattering kaboom" was a literal metaphor. Then it became metaphorical again—the Trope name for the explosion of a whole planet or moon (or humongous spacecraft), not just the Earth.
 * In The Cleveland Show, Mr. Waterman is trying to find the rest of his Santa costume:

"Brainiac 5: Shoot. Green Arrow: I know. I was hoping they'd be out looking for us. Brainiac 5: No, shoot!"
 * On Justice League Unlimited, Braniac 5 and Green Arrow find the Fatal Five waiting for them.

"Marceline: Finn! You can't kill my dad! Finn: Oh, right, I'm sorry-- Marceline: No, literally. You can't kill my dad. He's deathless."
 * From Adventure Time:
 * Just after Finn and Marceline have started going after her dad, Finn asks how he can kill her father.

"Steve: We don't have an instrument for Jeff. Bob: He could play the skin flute! Steve: (bursts out laughing) Bob: (holds up a flute bound with animal skins)"
 * Also, earliest appearances, Cinnamon Bun has a reputation of being dimwitted and clumsy, something that Princess Bubblegum claims is a result of being "half-baked". While this seems like her attempt at snarky humor (Cinnamon Bun is, as his name implies, a  living cinnamon bun) she's not joking. In the episode "The Red Throne", Cinnamon Bun spends most of the episode in the Fire Kingdom, where the environment bakes him right, making him smarter and more mature; in effect, becoming a fully baked adult.
 * In American Dad:

"Uncle Iroh: (stops Zuko and a pirate captain from fighting) Are you so busy fighting you cannot see your own ship has set sail? Prince Zuko: We have no time for your proverbs, Uncle! Uncle Iroh: It's no proverb! (cut to pirate ship being hijacked)"
 * This might possibly be a Shout-Out to the exact same joke from the original George of the Jungle cartoon series.
 * From Avatar: The Last Airbender

"Don Carnage: FIRE AT WILL! (Mooks fire at another mook, who runs screaming and dodging.) Don Carnage: No, don't fire at Will, fire at them!"
 * Later, Zuko's ship gets hijacked: "Maybe it SHOULD be a proverb..."
 * In the Lite Sprites special, the sprites are lost in a cave, and Meadow begins to glow. The other girls try to tell her this, but she takes it as a compliment instead.
 * Used to the point of a Hurricane of Puns in the Tex Avery short "Symphony in Slang", where Noah Webster and St. Peter try to interpret the slang-filled life story of a new arrival at the Pearly Gates.
 * Old-joke-new-twist version in an episode of Tale Spin:

Real Life

 * I am not ashamed, an Answers in Genesis-powered website, encouraged Christians around the world to "stand unashamedly and uncompromisingly on The Bible." (See Mixed Metaphor.) In response, a group of internet atheists decided to comply with this call a little more literally than the creators of the original campaign had intended.
 * Most people take the name of the restaurant "Hooters" to be a euphemism for breasts, whereas they assert, probably for legal reasons, that they are talking about owls and everyone just misunderstands.
 * Any truck stop in the USA which has a sign informing you that you can "Eat and Get Gas". (For example, Sherrill's on US Route 31 near Tipton, Indiana.)