Figurative LanguageFiguring it Out

Figurative and Literal Language

Literally: words function exactly as defined

The car is blue.

He caught the football.

Figuratively: figure out what it means

I’ve got your back.

You’re a doll.

^Figures of Speech

Simile

Comparison of two things using “like” or “as.”

Examples

The metal twisted like a ribbon.

She is as sweet as candy.

Important!

Using “like” or “as” doesn’t make a simile.

A comparison must be made.

Not a Simile: I like pizza.

Simile: The moon is like a pizza.

Metaphor

Two things are compared without using “like” or “as.”

Examples

All the world is a stage.

Men are dogs.

She has a stone heart.

Personification

Giving human traits to objects or ideas.

Examples

The sunlight danced.

Water on the lake shivers.

The streets are calling me.

Hyperbole

Exaggerating to show strong feeling or effect.

Examples

I will love you forever.

My house is a million miles from here.

She’d kill me.

Understatement

Expression with less strength than expected.

The opposite of hyperbole.

I’ll be there in one second.

This won’t hurt a bit.

How toIdentify Figurative Language

Is it a comparison between two things?

Yes

Does it use “like” or “as”?

No

Are they exaggerating too much or too little?

Yes No

Simile MetaphorYes No

Too Much? Too Little?

Hyperbole Understatement

Object or idea doinghuman things?

Personification

YesNo

?

Poetic Devices

The Sounds of Poetry

Alliteration

When the first sounds in words repeat.

Example

Peter Piper picked a pickled pepper.

We lurk late. We shoot straight.

Assonance

Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds. It is often used in combination with consonance and alliteration.

Example

He saw the cost and hauled off.

Notice the repetition of the “awe” sounds? (Depending on your dialect I suppose). Assonance can be subtle and may go unnoticed if you’re not scanning for it.

Consonance

When consonants repeat in the middle or end of words.

Vowels: a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y.

Consonants: all other letters.

Examples

Mammals named Sam are clammy.Curse, bless me now! With fierce tears I prey.

EnjambmentEnjambment is when the writer uses line breaks meaningfully and abruptly to create dual meanings or for emphasis. When a poem is read, the reader will conventionally make a slight pause (shorter than a comma) when transitioning from line to line in a poem. When a writer uses enjambment, he or she uses this space to spread an idea.Example

Rolling through the field in thedeadof winter.

Imagery• Imagery is when the writer or speaker uses their

descriptions to access the senses of the reader or listener. Sometimes this is called, using sensory details. When I say “senses” or “sensory,” I am referring to the five senses: sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell.

ExampleThe winter evening settles down

With smell of steaks in passageways.Six o'clock.

The burnt-out ends of smoky days.

Idiom

• An idiom is an expression that means something other than the literal meanings of its individual words.

• Example "Under the weather" is a common idiom or idiomatic

expression. You might miss a day of school because you feel "under the weather." The meaning of the expression has nothing to do with the weather. It means you feel ill. You have to memorize the meanings of idioms or figure out their meanings by using context clues.

Onomatopoeia

When a word’s pronunciation imitates its sound.

Examples

Buzz Fizz WoofHiss Clink BoomBeep Vroom Zip

Rhythm

When words are arranged in such a way that they make a pattern or beat.

Example

There once was a girl from Chicago

Who dyed her hair pink in the bathtub

I’m making a pizza the size of the sun.

Hint: hum the words instead of saying them.

Rhyme

When words have the same end sound.

Happens at the beginning, end, or middle of lines.

Examples

Where

Fair

Air

Bear

Glare

Repetition

Repeating a word or words for effect.

Example

NobodyNo, nobodyCan make it out here alone.Alone, all aloneNobody, but nobodyCan make it out here alone.

Quiz

On a separate sheet of paper…

1. I will put an example of figurative language on the board.

2. You will write whether it is an simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, or understatement.

3. You can use your notes.

1

He drew a line as straight as an arrow.

2

Knowledge is a kingdom and all who learn are kings and queens.

3

Can I see you for a second?

4

The sun was beating down on me.

5

A flag wags like a fishhook there in the sky.

6

I'd rather take bathswith a man-eating shark,or wrestle a lionalone in the dark,eat spinach and liver,pet ten porcupines,than tackle the homework,my teacher assigns.

7

Ravenous and savagefrom its longpolar journey,

the North Wind

is searchingfor food—

8

The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.

9

Can I have one of your chips?

10

I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,Welling and swelling I bear

in the tide.Leaving behind nights of terror and fearI rise

Answers1. Simile

2. Metaphor

3. Understatement

4. Personification

5. Simile

6. Hyperbole

7. Personification

8. Metaphor

9. Understatement

10. Metaphor