Figurative Language

What is it? O a word or phrase that departs from everyday literal language for the sake of comparison, emphasis, clarity, or freshness

ALLITERATION O The use of the same consonant sound in words occurring near one another O EXAMPLES: Dan Duncan’s darling Dachshunds, Duke and Daisy, dove in the deep dam.

ASSONANCE O The use of the same vowel sound in words occurring near one another O EXAMPLES: Alice’s Aunt Angie ate apples and artichokes all August.

CLICHÉ O An expression that has lost its power or originality from overuse O EXAMPLES: Absence makes the heart grow fonder Look on the bright side Wake up on the wrong side of the bed

EUPHEMISM O A polite word or phrase used in place of one that may be too direct, unpleasant, or embarrassing O EXAMPLES: downsize (fire) vertically challenged (short) visually challenged (poor eyesight) departed, passed away, six feet under, no longer with us, kicked the bucket, croaked, checked out, etc, (dead)

HYPERBOLE O An obvious exaggeration that should not be taken literally O EXAMPLES: He is a hundred feet tall. I waited in line for a year. I’ve told you a million times.

IDIOM O An expression with a meaning different from the literal meaning of the individual words O EXAMPLES: A frog in my throat Driving me up the wall Raining cats and dogs

ONOMATOPOEIA O The use of a word that sounds like its meaning O EXAMPLES: Zap Fizz Swoosh Thud Quack Bam Wham Whack

OXYMORON O A combination of two opposite or contradictory terms O EXAMPLES: pretty ugly Hell's Angels bad health jumbo shrimp home school Civil War

PUN O A humorous play on words, often involving a double meaning O EXAMPLE: I went to a seafood disco last week… and pulled a mussel. Being struck by lightning is a shocking experience!

SIMILE O An expression comparing one thing to another using the words “like” or “as” O EXAMPLES: As strong as an ox As flat as a pancake Life is like a box of chocolates.

METAPHOR O An expression that compares two different things without using the words “like” or “as” O EXAMPLES: The sun was a furnace. Marci’s voice is velvet. David is a worm.

Actual analogies & metaphors found in students’ essays O Her face was a perfect oval, like…  a circle that had its two other sides gently compressed by a thigh master. O She had a deep throaty genuine laugh, like…  that sound a dog makes just before he throws up.

O She grew on him like…  E. coli and he was room temperature Canadian beef. O Her vocabulary was as bad as…  like, um…whatever. O The little boat drifted across the pond exactly the way a…  bowling ball wouldn’t.

O The revelation that his marriage of 30 years had disintegrated because of his wife’s infidelity came as a rude shock like…  a surcharge at a formerly surcharge free ATM. O He was as tall as…  a six foot three inch tree. O McBride fell 12 stories, hitting the pavement like…  a hefty bag filled with vegetable soup.

O Her hair glistened in the rain like…  nose hair after a sneeze. O The hailstones leaped up off the pavement, just like…  maggots when you fry them in hot grease. O She walked into my office like…  a centipede with 98 missing legs.

O From the attic came an earthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie surreal quality, like…  when you’re on vacation in another city and you realize that Jeopardy comes on at 7:00pm instead of 7:30pm. O He fell for her like…  his heart was a mob informant and she was the East River.

O Long separated by cruel fate, the star crossed lovers raced across the field toward each other like…  two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36pm traveling at 55mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19pm at a speed of 35mph. O John and Mary had never met. They were like…  two hummingbirds that had also never met.

O Even in his last years, grandpappy had a mind like a steel trap, only one that had been left out for so long, it had rusted shut. O The plan was simple, like…  my brother-in-law Phil. But unlike Phil, this plan might just work. O The ballerina rose gracefully en pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like…  a dog at a fire hydrant.

O It was an American tradition, like…  fathers chasing kids with power tools. O He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a…  garbage truck backing up. O It hurt like…  the way your tongue hurts after you accidentally staple it to the wall.

The Assignment ~ O Write three original sentences using figurative language. O Remember, you must use a simile or metaphor to provide a better, clearer explanation of something. O Be creative and have fun!  the end of the hour!!!