1. Figurative Language Whenever you describe something by comparing it with something else, you are using figurative language. Any language that goes beyond the literal meaning of words in order to furnish new effects or fresh insights into an idea or a subject. The most common figures of speech are simile, metaphor, and alliteration. Speech that contains images.

2. SIMILE: A COMPARISON OF TWO UNLIKE OBJECTS USING THE WORDS LIKE OR AS. The candle on the table flickered like a firefly.

3. Metaphor: a comparison of two unlike objects; however, it does not use the words like or as. During June, the classroom was an oven, and the students baked inside it.

4. Personification: animals, ideas, things, are given human qualities. The flowers laughed and wiggled as the wind ran through and tickled them.

5. Hyperbole: an intentional over exaggeration. I’m so tired I could sleep for ten years.

6. Idiom: an expression that does not mean what it literally says. … he let the cat out of the bag…

7. Onomatopoeia: word or words of which the sound suggests the meaning. Pow… sizzle… zip

8. Alliteration: a repetition of a beginning consonant sound. Dumbfounded, Debbie decided to do the dishes.

9. Analogy: a partial similarity of two things. An analogy is comparable to metaphor and simile in that it shows how two different things are similar, but it’s a bit more complex. Rather than a figure of speech, an analogy is more of a logical argument. The presenter of an analogy will often demonstrate how two things are alike by pointing out shared characteristics, with the goal of showing that if two things are similar in some ways, they are similar in other ways as well. The computer is like the brain… or… the heart is like a pump

10. Symbol: A unique quality of man is his ability to make symbols. Man uses signs, words, or objects to stand for something other than what those signs, words, or objects actually are. We all recognize what certain symbols mean. For example, the symbol “+” tells us that we are able to add two or more numbers together, and “?” means a question is being asked.

11. The Egyptians had many symbols. A common Egyptian symbol was the ankh. This was the hieroglyphic sign for “life.” Cartouche is a French name given to the oval rings in which a pharaoh’s name and the names of other members of the royal family were written. IN a cartouche, the personal name of the pharaoh might be followed by a saying about him. The Egyptians called the cartouche a shenu, which meant “to encircle,” because they believed the pharaoh ruled all that the sun encircled. The cartouche also stood for infinity.

12. The Rosetta Stone contained six cartouches spaced at regular intervals and all enclosing the same hieroglyphic signs written in the same order, and this was what gave scholars their first clue to help them decipher the code.

13. THE ACTIVITY Using a blank cartouche that Mrs. Nitz will give you, you are going to design a symbol for yourself. Using symbols of your own, write something about yourself which tells who you are, and why you are important. Decorate your cartouche using bright colors and interesting designs.