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This inquiry explored 68 pre-service perceptions and aspirations of Teaching Chinese as an International Language (TCIL) teachers by analysing the metaphors they used to describe themselves as teachers. The inquiry revealed that the participants used a variety of metaphors to project the images of themselves as pre-service TCIL teachers. The results also confirm that the participants’ use of metaphors, as powerful tools to understand the complexity of teaching, reflects the mediation of cultural, historical and sociopolitical conditions. These findings help teacher educators to support TCIL teachers’ professional development by engaging them in critical dialogues about the metaphors they use to perceive themselves as TCIL teachers. They also help teacher educators to adopt tailor-made pedagogical content to address their development needs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]