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Figure of Speech

This document defines and provides examples of common figures of speech used in literature, including imagery, simile, metaphor, alliteration, hyperbole, onomatopoeia, personification, metonymy, and synecdoche. Figures of speech use creative language to enhance writing by presenting ideas beyond literal meanings or by comparing two unlike things in unusual ways that create vivid mental images for the reader.

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Ma-Anne Joyce Rodi
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276 views22 pages

Figure of Speech

This document defines and provides examples of common figures of speech used in literature, including imagery, simile, metaphor, alliteration, hyperbole, onomatopoeia, personification, metonymy, and synecdoche. Figures of speech use creative language to enhance writing by presenting ideas beyond literal meanings or by comparing two unlike things in unusual ways that create vivid mental images for the reader.

Uploaded by

Ma-Anne Joyce Rodi
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Figure of Speech

Figure of Speech
• Authors often use figures of speech in both
literature and poetry to enhance their writing.
• Figures of speech present ordinary things in
new or unusual ways.
• They communicate ideas that go beyond the
words’ usual, literal meanings.
Imagery
• Descriptive writing that appeals to the senses
(sight, taste, touch, smell, and hearing).
• When a writer uses imagery, the descriptive
writing helps create a picture or image in your
mind.
Imagery = Mental Image
Imagery
Example: The hot July sun cast an orange glare
over the ocean waves.
Imagery
Another example: The cool waves crashed over
my feet as we walked along the gritty sand.
Imagery

2. “The delicate white bird flew gracefully through


the blue sky” is an example of imagery because it
gives the reader a mental image by appealing to
the senses.
Imagery
1. There is a white bird in the sky.
2. The delicate white bird flew gracefully through
the blue sky.
3. I heard the birds and saw them flying.

 Remember: When a writer uses imagery, he or


she chooses words that will appeal to some or
all of the reader’s five senses.
Simile
• Comparing two unlike things using like or as.

Example: She ran like the wind.

Running and the wind are unlike things. When


you compare the speed of running to the speed
of the wind, you are using a simile.
Simile
More Examples:
1.She was as light as a feather.
2.You are acting like a baby.
Simile
Which of the following is not another example of
a simile?

1.He’s as messy as a pig when he eats.


2.He eats like a pig.
3.He is a pig.
Metaphor
• The definition of a metaphor is similar to the
definition of a simile but there is one important
difference between the two.

Remember the definition of simile has two


parts:
• Two unlike things are being compared
• The words like or as are used to make the
comparison
Metaphor
Simile: Fido is like a teddy bear.
Simile: Fido is as soft as a teddy bear.
Metaphor: Fido is a teddy bear.

Simile: That boy is like a pig.


Simile: That boy is as messy as a pig.
Metaphor: That boy is a pig.
Alliteration
• Alliteration is the repetition of beginning
consonant sounds
Example:
Six silly swans went swimming in the sea.

 It’s important to note that not every word in


the sentence has to begin with the same letter in
order for it to be considered alliteration.
Hyperbole
• Hyperbole is a major exaggeration or
overstatement.
• Authors use this figure of speech to emphasize a
point or add humor.

Example:
My backpack weighs a ton.
Hyperbole
Example:
The wolf was 100 feet high.
Onomatopoeia
• Onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like its
meaning.
• It can also be described as the use of a word
which imitates a sound.

Example:
Zip! My dress was fastened and I was finally
ready for the wedding.
Onomatopoeia
Example:
I knew we had finally left the city when I could
hear the gentle moo of the cows in the field.

• Other examples include: screech, whirr, sizzle,


crunch, bang, pow, zap, roar, growl, click, snap,
crackle, and pop.
Personification
• Giving human traits or characteristics to
something that isn’t human, such as animals,
objects or non-living things.

When a writer uses personification, he or she


gives characteristics of a person to an animal,
object or thing.
Personification
Example:
The willow tree shook her long hair.

 The example is referring to the way that the


willow tree’s long branches sway in the wind.
By saying “shook her long hair”, the tree is
given characteristics of a human.
Personification
More examples:
1.The car danced across the icy road.
2.The angry clouds marched across the sky.
3.The stars in the clear night sky winked at me.
4.The tulips nodded their heads in the breeze.
Metonymy
• Something is named to replace something
closely related to it.

Example:
Don’t be addicted to the bottle.
Soon, that corrupt Senator will be in the big
house.
Synecdoche
• The whole is replaced by the part or the part by
the whole.

Example:
50 heads of cattle
 “head” is used to mean whole animals.
Boots on the ground
“boots” refers to soldiers.

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