1. Figurative Lexicon “Figuring it Out”

2. Figurative and Literal Language Literal: words function exactly as defined The car is blue. He caught the football. Figurative: figure out what it means I’ve got your back. Love is blind.

3. Literary Terms Alliteration Allusion Connotation Denotation Epiphany Hyperbole Idiom Imagery Irony –(Verbal/Sarcasm, Dramatic, Situational)

4. Literary Terms Metaphor Motif Personification Pun Onomatopoeia Oxymoron Repetition Simile Suspense

5. Alliteration Occurs when a series of words in a row (or close to a row) have the same first consonant sound. Examples: Carla's cat clawed her couch, creating chaos. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

6. Allusion Expression that references a person, place or event in order to bring it to mind without clearly naming it. Examples: He is a real Romeo with the ladies. This place is like the Garden of Eden. With all of his lies, I was surprised his nose was not growing!

7. Connotation Something suggested or implied by a word or thing rather than being named or described. Example: Home suggests comfort, security and family. Wall Street implies money or wealth. Hollywood suggests fame. Dove implies peace.

8. Denotation Literal or primary meaning of a word. Examples: Rose is a flower but also stands for love and beauty. Rock is a stone but can also stand for someone who is stable and solid.

9. Epiphany A moment in which you suddenly see or understand something in a new or very clear way. Examples: Isaac Newton was sitting below an apple tree when an apple fell on his head, which caused him to develop his Universal Law of Gravitation.

10. Hyperbole Exaggerating to show strong feeling or effect. Examples: I will love you forever. My house is a million miles away. She’d kill me if she found out!

11. Idiom A saying that isn’t meant to be taken literally. Doesn’t “mean” what it says Example: Don’t be a stick in the mud! You’re the apple of my eye. The buck stops here. It’s a piece of cake!

12. Imagery Formation of mental images. Examples: He could hear the footsteps of doom nearing. She was like a breath of fresh air infusing life back into him.

13. Irony The use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning. Three different types of irony: Verbal Situational Dramatic

14. Verbal Irony/Sarcasm Intentional use of words to mean something different from what a person actually says. Examples: “Thanks for the ticket officer you made my day!” “I can’t wait to read the seven hundred page book report.” “Great, someone stained my new dress!”

15. Dramatic Irony It occurs when the audience is aware of something that the characters in the story are not aware of.

16. Situational Irony Involves a discrepancy between what is expected to happen and what actually happens. Examples: The fire station burned down. A pilot had a fear of heights. The police station was robbed.

17. Metaphor When you portray a person, place, thing, or action as being something else, even though it is not actually that “something else.” Two things are compared without using “like” or “as.” Examples: The assignment was a breeze. She has a heart of gold. The classroom was a zoo!

18. Motif A motif can be almost anything: an idea, an object, a concept, a character archetype, the weather, a color, or even a statement. Motifs are used to establish a theme or a certain mood; they have a symbolic meaning. Examples: The mirror in ‘Snow White’. In fairy tales: happily ever after, the handsome prince, the fairy godmother, damsel in distress

19. Personification Giving human traits to objects or ideas. Examples: The ocean danced in the moonlight. The wind sang through the meadow. Time creeps up on you.

20. Pun A form of “word play” in which words have a double meaning. Examples: A boiled egg every morning is hard to beat! Reading while sunbathing makes you well red. A chicken farmer’s favorite car is a coupe.

21. Onomatopoeia A word that “makes” a sound. Examples: SPLAT PING SLAM POP POW

22. Oxymoron When two words are put together that contradict each other. “Opposites ” Examples: Jumbo Shrimp Pretty Ugly Freezer Burn

23. Repetition A literary device that repeats the same word or phrase a few times to make an idea clearer.

24. Simile Comparison of two things using “like” or “as.” Examples: The metal twisted like a ribbon. She is as sweet as candy.

25. 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.

26. Suspense A feeling of growing tension or excitement. Writers create suspense by raising questions in the mind of their readers.