A brief explanation about 15 Types of figures of speech with examples.

1. Figure of Speech Presentation by
Dev Jain (OE-095)
Std. 8 English Medium
Teacher’s Name: Mrs. Namrata Motwani

2. DEFINITION
A figure of speech is a word or phrase that is used in a
non-literal way to create an effect. This effect may be
rhetorical as in the deliberate arrangement of words to
achieve something poetic, or imagery as in the use of
language to suggest a visual picture or make an idea
more vivid. Overall, figures of speech function as
literary devices because of their expressive use of
language. Words are used in other ways than their
literal meanings or typical manner of application.

3. TYPES OF FIGURE OF SPEECH
Roughly, there are 31 types of figures of speech in Grammar.
But we only use 15 of them commonly. Let us take a look at
them.

4. 1. SIMILES
Key Points:
• A simile is a phrase that uses a comparison to describe. For example, “life”
can be described as similar to “a box of chocolates.”
• You know you’ve spotted one when you see the words like or as in a
comparison.
• Similes are great for famous authors, public speakers, and folks who want to
make their writing as exciting as a spontaneous show of fireworks.

5. Examples For Similes:
• You were as brave as a lion.
• They fought like cats and dogs.
• He is as funny as a barrel of monkeys.
• This house is as clean as a whistle.
• He is as strong as an ox.
• Your explanation is as clear as mud.
• Watching the show was like watching grass grow.

6. 2.METAPHORs
Key Points:
• A metaphor states that one thing is another thing
• It equates those two things not because they actually are the same, but for
the sake of comparison or symbolism.
• If you take a metaphor literally, it will probably sound very strange
(are there actually any sheep, black or otherwise, in your family?)
• Metaphors are used in poetry, literature, and anytime someone wants to add
some color to their language.

7. Examples For Metaphors:
• The snow is a white blanket.
• He is a shining star.
• Her long hair was a flowing golden river.
• Tom's eyes were ice as he stared at her.
• The children were flowers grown in concrete gardens.
• The falling snowflakes are dancers.
• The calm lake was a mirror.

8. 3.PERSONIFICATION
Key Points:
• Personification is a figure of speech in which an idea or thing is given human
attributes and/or feelings or is spoken of as if it were human.
• Personification is a common form of metaphor in that human characteristics are
attributed to nonhuman things.
• This allows writers to create life and motion within inanimate objects, animals ,
and even abstract ideas by assigning them recognizable human behaviors and
emotions.

9. Examples For Personification:
• Lightning danced across the sky.
• The wind howled in the night.
• The car complained as the key was roughly turned in its ignition.
• Rita heard the last piece of pie calling her name.
• My alarm clock yells at me to get out of bed every morning.
• Lightning danced across the sky.

10. 4.ALLITERATION
Key Points:
• Alliteration is the repetition of sounds, not just letters.
• Alliterative words don’t have to be right next to each other.
Other words can appear between them.
• Alliteration is found often in poetry and prose, as well as in
commercial writing like brand names and marketing taglines.

11. Examples For Alliteration:
• Come and clean the chaos in your closet.
• The big, bad bear scared all the baby bunnies by the bushes.
• Shut the shutters before the banging sound makes you shudder.
• Go and gather the green leaves on the grass.
• Please put away your paints and practice the piano.
• Round and round she ran until she realized she was running round
and round.

12. 5.ASSONANCE
Key Points:
• Assonance is a resemblance in the sounds of words/syllables
either between their vowels (e.g., meat, bean) or between their
consonants (e.g., keep, cape).
• However, assonance between consonants is generally
called consonance in American usage.
• Assonance occurs more often in verse than in prose; it is used in
English-language poetry and is particularly important in Old
French, Spanish, and the Celtic languages.

13. Examples For Assonance:
• The light of the fire is a sight.
• Go slow over the road.
• Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
• Sally sells sea shells beside the sea shore.
• Try as I might, the kite did not fly.
• They’re some creeps who I wouldn’t meet if you paid me a heap
of cash!

14. 6. ONOMATOPoEIA
Key Points:
• Onomatopoeia, pronounced on-uh-mat-uh–pee–uh, is defined as a
word which imitates the natural sounds of a thing.
• It creates a sound effect that mimics the thing described.
• It makes the description more expressive and interesting.
• In addition to the sounds they represent, many onomatopoeic
words have developed meanings of their own.

15. Examples For Onomatopoeia:
• The buzzing bee flew away.
• The sack fell into the river with a splash.
• The books fell on the table with a loud thump.
• He looked at the roaring.
• The rustling leaves kept me awake.
• We heard the vroom of the car’s engine as it whizzed by
and screeched around the corner.

16. 7.HYPERBOLE
Key Points:
• Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which an author or speaker
purposely and obviously exaggerates to an extreme.
• It is used for emphasis or as a way of making a description more
creative and humorous.
• It is important to note that hyperbole is not meant to be taken
literally; the audience knows it’s an exaggeration.

17. Examples For Hyperbole:
• She’s going to die of embarrassment.
• Spring break will never come.
• He's running faster than the wind.
• This bag weighs a ton.
• That man is as tall as a house.
• This is the worst day of my life.
• The shopping cost me a million dollars.

18. 8.ANTITHESIS
Key Points:
• Antithesis, which literally means “opposite,” is a rhetorical device
in which two opposite ideas are put together in a sentence to
achieve a contrasting effect.
• Antithesis emphasizes the idea of contrast by parallel structures
of the contrasted phrases or clauses.
• The structures of phrases and clauses are similar, in order to
draw the attention of the listeners or readers.

19. Examples For Antithesis:
• Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice.
• Man proposes, God disposes.
• Love is an ideal thing, marriage is a real thing.
• Speech is silver, but silence is gold.
• Patience is bitter, but it has a sweet fruit.
• Money is the root of all evil: poverty is the fruit of all goodness.
• You are easy on the eyes, but hard on the heart.

20. 9.ALLUSION
Key Points:
• An allusion is a reference, typically brief, to a person, place, thing,
event, or other literary work with which the reader is presumably
familiar.
• As a literary device, allusion allows a writer to compress a great
deal of meaning and significance into a word or phrase.
• However, allusions are only effective to the extent that they are
recognized and understood by the reader, and that they are
properly inferred and interpreted by the reader.

21. Examples For Allusion:
• His smile is like kryptonite to me.
• She felt like she had a golden ticket.
• That guy is young, scrappy, and hungry.
• I wish I could just click my heels.
• If I’m not home by midnight, my car might turn into a pumpkin.
• She smiles like a Cheshire cat.
• His job is like pulling a sword out of a stone.

22. 10.APOSTROPHE
Key Points:
• apostrophe occurs when a character in the story speaks to an
object, an idea, or someone who’s dead or nonexistent, as if it
has feelings.
• The purpose is to highlight the importance of the object, idea or
non-existent person in the story and to inject a dramatic effect.
• Apostrophe is commonly applied in fiction, music, poetry and
prose. In this scenario, a character is seen or imagined alone
(solo) and thinking his/her thoughts out loud.

23. Examples For Apostrophe:
• “I’m planning to write a book someday.”
• “You’re going to have a lot of fun with your new puppy.”
• “She’s always on time.”
• “I can’t believe it’s snowing again.”
• “I don’t like anchovies.”
• “He’d like to go fishing in Alaska.”
• “Let’s start saving more money each month.”

24. 11.ANAPHORA
Key Points:
• Anaphora is when a certain word or phrase is repeated at the
beginning of clauses or sentences that follow each other.
• This repetition emphasizes the phrase while adding rhythm to the
passage
• This Makes the phrase more memorable and enjoyable to read.
• The phrase becomes more emotionally-charged than before.

25. Examples for Anaphora:
• “Go big or go home.”
• “Be bold. Be brief. Be gone.”
• “Get busy living or get busy dying.”
• “Get busy living or get busy dying.”
• “Give me liberty or give me death.”
• “You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t.”
• “Stay safe. Stay well. Stay happy.”

26. 12.OXYMORON
Key Points:
• Oxymoron is a figure of speech pairing two words together that
are opposing and/or contradictory.
• This combination of contrary or antithetical words is also known
in conversation as a contradiction in terms.
• As a literary device, oxymoron has the effect of creating an
impression, enhancing a concept, and even entertaining the
reader.

27. Examples for Oxymoron:
• Act naturally
• Alone together
• Amazingly awful
• Bittersweet
• Clearly confused
• Dark light
• Deafening silence

28. 13.PARADOX
Key Points:
• A paradox is a statement that contradicts itself, or that must be
both true and untrue at the same time.
• Paradoxes are quirks in logic that demonstrate how our thinking
sometimes goes haywire, even when we use perfectly logical
reasoning to get there.
• But a key part of paradoxes is that they at
least sound reasonable. They’re not obvious nonsense, and it’s
only upon consideration that we realize their self-defeating logic.

29. Examples for Paradox:
• Save money by spending it.
• If I know one thing, it's that I know nothing.
• This is the beginning of the end.
• Deep down, you're really shallow.
• I'm a compulsive liar.
• What a pity that youth must be wasted on the young.
• Men work together whether they work together or apart.

30. 14.IRONY
Key Points:
• Irony is a subtle form of humour which involves saying things
that you do not mean.
• If you talk about the irony of a situation, you mean that it
is odd or amusing because it involves a contrast.

31. Examples for Irony:
• Telling a quiet group, “don’t everybody speak all at once.”
• Coming home to a big mess and saying, “it’s great to be back.”
• Telling a rude customer to “have a nice day.”
• Walking into an empty theater and asking, “it’s too crowded.”
• Stating during a thunderstorm, “beautiful weather we’re having.”
• Delivering bad news by saying, “the good news is”

32. 15.PUNS
Key Points:
• A pun is a literary device that is also known as a “play on
words.” Puns involve words with similar or identical sounds but
with different meanings.
• Their play on words also relies on a word or phrase having more
than one meaning.
• Puns are generally intended to be humorous, but they often have
a serious purpose as well in literary works.

33. Examples for Puns:
• Denial is a river in Egypt.
• The cyclist was two tired to win the race.
• Take my wife, please.
• Her cat is near the computer to keep an eye on the mouse.
• When my algebra teacher retired, he wasn’t ready for the
aftermath.
• Some bunny loves you.

34. Thank you all of you for going through this
Presentation.
TAPOVAN VATSALYADHAM ENGLISH MEDIUM SCOOL,
AMIYAPUR, GUJRAT - 382421