Figurative Language Terms

Literary Terms You Should Know On your paper, write the definition, and one example for each term.

Figurative Language
a tool a writer uses to help the reader visualize what is happening in a piece of writing

Simile
a comparison between two unlike things using the words like , as or than
-The sun is like a yellow ball of fire in the sky.
- Her feet were bigger than boats.
- They fought like cats and dogs.

Metaphor
a comparison between two unlike things without using the words like, as, or than ; when one thing is the other thing
- Her home was a prison.
- His hair is straw.
- George is a sheep.

Hyperbole
the use of a big exaggeration to make a point or for effect.
- He has tons of money.
- Her brain is the size of a pea.
- I’ve told you a million times to capitalize people’s names.

Idioms
expressions that usually cannot be understood by defining the separate words
- I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.
- That test was a piece of cake.
- Something fishy is going on around here!

Allusion
a reference to something from literature, history, or culture to express a point.
- Christy didn't like to spend money, but she was no Scrooge.
- The cinnamon rolls were huge and golden brown, reminiscent of the twisted buns on the sides of Princess Leia's head.
- I am afraid of spiders, but I'm no cowardly lion!

Personification
giving human qualities to non-human objects
- The rain kissed my cheeks as it fell.
- The car engine coughed and sputtered as it started.
- The microwave timer told me my pizza was ready.

Alliteration
repetition of an initial consonant sound; there should be at least two repetitions in a row
- The wooly walrus wonders when we’ll walk by.
- Sally sells seashells by the seashore.
- Peter Piper picks pickled peppers.

Onomatopoeia
when a word sounds like what it represents
- splash
- drip
- smush
- splat

Imagery
the use of vivid sensory description to create mental pictures.

- The room was dark and musty and smelled like an old shoe.
- The blueberries were as big as your thumb and tasted like soot.
- We heard the horses hoofs clatter on the cobblestone street.

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Figurative Language Terms

by kjhatzi on Oct 14, 2008

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Figurative Language Terms — Presentation Transcript