Figurative Language Definitions

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What is Imagery?

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Imagery is the use of language that engages the five senses: hearing, sight, taste, smell, and touch. Example: The scruffy black cat’s back arches and hair stands straight up when it encounters the chocolate brown snarling dog whose teeth look like little knives covered in butter.

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What is Personification?

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Personification is giving human traits to something that is not human. Example: My alarm clock yells at me every morning to get out of bed!

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What is a Metaphor?

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A metaphor is a direct comparison between two objects or concepts. Example: Her long hair was a flowing golden river.

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What is an Allusion?

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An allusion is a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, cultural, literary, or political significance. Example: Let’s not go there; it will unlock Pandora’s box.

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What is a Simile?

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A simile is an indirect comparison that typically uses 'like' or 'as'. Example: She is as happy as a cat riding a unicorn through space.

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What is Hyperbole?

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Hyperbole is an exaggerated statement not meant to be taken literally. Example: I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.

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What is Alliteration?

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Alliteration is the repetition of the same initial consonant sound in a series of words. Example: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

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What is an Idiom?

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An idiom is a phrase or expression that has a figurative meaning different from its literal meaning. Example: It's raining cats and dogs.

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What is Onomatopoeia?

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Onomatopoeia is a word that imitates the natural sound of a thing. Example: The bees buzzed, and the brook gurgled.

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What is a Pun?

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A pun is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term or similar-sounding words for humorous or rhetorical effect. Example: Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.