From the Latin term for “concept,” a poetic conceit is an often unconventional, logically complex, or surprising metaphor whose delights are more intellectual than sensual. Petrarchan (after the Itali [..]

an artistic device or effect An urban panorama is viewed from a high vantage point, a conceit used in topographic art to render vast perspectives. — New York Times (Sep 30, 2011)

late 14c., "something formed in the mind, thought, notion," from conceiven (see conceive) based on analogy of deceit and receipt. Sense evolved from "something formed in the mind," [..]

An elaborate or unusual comparison--especially one using unlikely metaphors, simile, hyperbole, and contradiction. Before the beginning of the seventeenth century, the term conceit was a synonym for & [..]

The noun Conceit is derived from the verb 'to conceive' and used for a fanciful idea (eg an ornamental structure with little or no use).

n. Self-flattering opinion.

An elaborate, usually intellectually ingenious poetic comparison or image, such as an analogy or metaphor in which, say a beloved is compared to a ship, planet, etc. The comparison may be brief or ext [..]

Literally meaning a ‘concept’, a ingenious comparison between things seemingly unlike. Shakespeare’s sonnet which begins “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun” makes fun of standard Renaissance conceits which were to an extent modelled on those of Petrarch, the fourteenth-century Italian p [..]

A metaphor that is unusually ingenious or elaborate. Common feature in work of metaphysical poets, such as John Donne.

Extended metaphor. Term used to describe Renaissance metaphysical poetry in England and colonial poetry, such as that of Anne Bradstreet, in colonial America. Decadents

An elaborate, usually intellectually ingenious poetic comparison or image, such as an analogy or metaphor in which, say a beloved is compared to a ship, planet, etc. The comparison may be brief or extended. See Petrarchan Conceit. (Conceit is an old word for concept.) See John Donne's "Valediction: Forbidding Mourning," for e [..]

 conception, opinion, fancy.

An elaborate and complicated metaphor. An early exponent of conceits was the 14th Century Italian poet Petrarch. The Petrarchan conceit was imitated by many Elizabethan poets including Shakesp [..]

pleasant fancy; gaity of imagination; acuteness; pleasant thought.

(n) feelings of excessive pride(n) an elaborate poetic image or a far-fetched comparison of very dissimilar things(n) a witty or ingenious turn of phrase(n) an artistic device or effect(n) the trait o [..]

conception, opinion, fancy

A conceit is a kind of metaphor that compares two very unlike things in a surprising and clever way. Often, conceits are extended metaphors that dominate an entire passage or poem. Metaphysical poet J [..]