Figurative Language Techniques

Writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid.

• figurative language

• prose

• paradox

• foreshadowing

A figure of speech that implies a comparison between two relatively unlikely things saying one thing is another.

EXAMPLE: "My nephew is a monkey! He climbs on everything."

• alliteration

• hyperbole

• personification

• metaphor

A comparison between two unlike things, usually with the words 'like' or 'as'.

EXAMPLE: "She dances like a chicken on hot coals."

• synecdoche

• irony

• simile

• allusion

The giving of human qualities to an animal, object or abstract idea.

EXAMPLE: "The chocolate cake was calling my name."

• analogy

• hyperbole

• idiom

• personification

An exaggerated statement used to emphasize an idea or make a point.

EXAMPLE: "I've told you a million times."

• simile

• pun

• allusion

• hyperbole

The use of words which actually sound like the objects or actions to which they refer.

EXAMPLE: "The guitar twanged as he thumped on it."

• onomatopoeia

• hyperbole

• idiom

• irony

The repetition of vowel sounds.

EXAMPLE: "Try to light the fire by the ottoman over there."

• metaphor

• assonance

• pun

• paradox

A seemingly contradictory statement, which actually makes sense or contains some truth.

EXAMPLE: "Deep down you are actually quite shallow."

• metaphor

• hyperbole

• paradox

• anaphora

The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses.

EXAMPLE: "Every man, every woman, every child, should be loved."

• paradox

• simile

• anaphora

• analogy

A figure of speech in which a part is used to represent the whole, or the whole for a part.

EXAMPLE: "I see many new faces here tonight."

• synecdoche

• personification

• onomatopoeia

• paradox