Figures of speech

Front

What is a metaphor?

Back

A figure of speech that makes a direct comparison between two unlike things without using 'like' or 'as'. Example: 'Time is a thief.'

Front

What is personification?

Back

A figure of speech where human qualities are attributed to animals, inanimate objects, or abstract concepts. Example: 'The wind whispered through the trees.'

Front

What is onomatopoeia?

Back

A figure of speech that uses words that imitate the sound they describe. Example: 'buzz', 'bang', 'sizzle'.

Front

What is a simile?

Back

A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike things using 'like' or 'as'. Example: 'Her smile was like the sun.'

Front

What is alliteration?

Back

A figure of speech where the same initial consonant sound is repeated in a series of words. Example: 'She sells sea shells by the sea shore.'

Front

What is assonance?

Back

A figure of speech that involves the repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words. Example: 'The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain.'

Front

What is an idiom?

Back

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

Front

What is hyperbole?

Back

An exaggerated statement not meant to be taken literally. Example: 'I'm so hungry I could eat a horse.'

Front

What is an oxymoron?

Back

A figure of speech that combines contradictory terms. Example: 'deafening silence'.

Front

What is a pun?

Back

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