This paper classifies and lists the figurative words about humans according to 3 criteria: human attributes, inclination and preferences, and actions. Using the Sejong corpus, it also looks into the characteristics of the figurative words which are frequently used and the aspects of their usage(a construction of words combination and typical examples). Moreover, it identifies the structure, aspects and characteristics of their cognitive meanings by examining the creation and background of the figurative words. Through these processes, it found how Korean people have perceived and expressed humans. The targets that may be compared to humans are categorized in four steps. People are especially compared to animals. In other words, Korean people like to express critically human personalities, abilities, physical characteristics, and inclinations. It considered how positively or negatively the figurative words about humans will be perceived through a survey. The survey showed that a desirable human whom Korean people want is a upright, ordinary-looking, reliable, and active person. It also showed that Korean people think it is important not to go extremes but maintain neutrality. We use these figurative words to indicate the meaning more distinctly, and particularly the figurative words about humans to express critically what we dislike. (Sookmyung Women’s University)