Figurative Language: Making

Writing Better for 2,000+ years

English 9

What is Figurative Language & Why Use It

• Figurative language is a method of communicating that uses figures of

speech to be more effective, impactful, and persuasive.

• Figurative language can help give readers new insight or

understanding on a topic.

• It can also appeal to a person’s senses, which help the reader to create

images in their mind.

• By using figurative language you help a reader better understand what

you have to say. It makes your message more specific, relatable, and

adds clarity.

Metaphor (definition)

• Metaphor is a figure of speech which makes an implicit,

implied or hidden comparison between two things or

objects that are poles apart from each other but have some

characteristics common between them.

• In other words, a resemblance of two contradictory or

different objects is made based on a single or some

common characteristics.

Metaphor (examples)

• My brother was boiling mad. (This implies he was too angry.)

• The assignment was a breeze. (This implies that the assignment was

not difficult.)

• She’s buried under a sea of paperwork. (This implies that woman has

a lot of work left to finish.)

• “Sonnet 18” by William Shakespeare, also known as “Shall I Compare

Thee to a Summer’s Day,” is an extended metaphor between the love

of the speaker and the fairness of the summer season. He writes that

“thy eternal summer,” here taken to mean the love of the subject,

“shall not fade.”

Simile (definition)

• A simile is a figure of speech that makes a comparison,

showing similarities between two different things.

• Unlike a metaphor, a simile draws resemblance with the

help of the words “like” or “as”. Therefore, it is a direct

comparison.

Simile (examples)

• The water well was as dry as a bone.

• He is as cunning as a fox.

• The team’s new linebacker looked as strong as an ox.

• Taken from Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, “Elderly American

ladies leaning on their canes listed toward me like towers of Pisa.”

• This simile produces a humorous effect by comparing old women

leaning on walking sticks with the ancient leaning tower of Pisa.

Personification (definition)

• Personification is a figure of speech in which a

thing, an idea or an animal is given human

attributes.

• The non-human objects are portrayed in such a

way that we feel they have the ability to act like

human beings

Personification (examples)

• Look at my car. She is a beauty, isn’t it so?

• The wind whispered through dry grass.

• The flowers danced in the gentle breeze.

• The branches of the trees scratched at my

window all night; trying to find a way in to get

me.

Onomatopoeia (definition)

• Onomatopoeia are words which imitate the

natural sounds of a thing.

• It creates a sound effect that mimics the

thing described, making the description

more expressive and interesting.

Onomatopoeia (examples)

• The buzzing bees kept trying to land on my Hawaiian shirt.

• With a loud splash, dad hit the water with his failed

cannonball.

• Several onomatopoeic words exist for the human voice:

growl, giggle, grunt, murmur and chatter

• Animal sounds are also considered onomatopeoia: meow,

moo, neigh, oink, baa

Alliteration (definition)

• Alliteration is a device in which a number of words,

having the same first consonant sound, occur close

together in a series.

• An important point to remember is that alliteration does

not depend on letters but on sounds.

• It creates a musical effect in the text that enhances the

pleasure of reading a literary piece.

Alliteration (examples)

• His head swooned slowly as he heard the snow falling.

• From forth the fatal loins of these two foes;

• I focused on the phone for five minutes before I realised it

was dead.

• Don’t forget the tongue twisters: She sells sea-shells on the

sea-shore.

Allusion (definition)

• Allusion is a brief reference to a person, place, thing or

idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance.

• It does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it

refers. It is just a passing comment and the writer expects

the reader to possess enough knowledge to spot the

allusion and grasp its importance in a text.

• Two types: Indirect, Direct

Allusion (examples)

• “Don’t act like a Romeo in front of her.” (This references

Shakespeare’s famous character.)

• Walking into the antique shop was like walking through the wardrobe

and being met by Mr. Tumnus. (Both the wardrobe and Mr. Tumnus

reference the Chronicles of Narnia.)

• If, while my wife is out, my boys have been whining a lot, I simply say

the following to let her know: “But Uncle Owen…” This is a

reference to Luke Skywalker in Star Wars.

Symbolism (definition)

• Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities, by

giving them symbolic meanings that are different from their literal

sense.

• Symbolic meaning of an object or an action is understood by when,

where, and how it is used.

• Generally, it is an object representing another, to give an entirely

different meaning that is much deeper and more significant.

• Sometimes, however, an action, an event or a word spoken by

someone may have a symbolic value.

Symbolism (examples)

• The dove is a symbol of peace…so is an olive branch

• The smaller army raised the white flag (a symbol of

making peace)

• Symbolism of a word can change: chains can symbolize

either “unity” or “imprisonment”

• How different can they be? In the United States, the green

cross symbolises marijuana. In the United Kingdom, it

symbolises a pharmacy (like in a Walgreens or Rite-Aid).

Imagery (definition)

• Imagery uses figurative language to represent objects,

actions, and ideas in such a way that it appeals to our five

senses (touch, taste, hearing, smell, sight).

• Imagery helps readers create an image in their head of

what they hear or read.

• Imagery uses figures of speech (like those we have gone

over today) to help appeal to our bodily senses.

• Sometimes called sensory language

Imagery (examples)

Hearing: Though he tried to sound like a sparrow, Juan’s call made him sound like a dying chicken.

Sight: The lightning flashed, only momentarily, but it was enough for me to see the path back to my car.

Taste: Iron, that is what Mike thought of as the blood dripped into his mouth.

Touch: In the dark, Paul reached out to steady himself, only to feel, not a wall, but the bare skin of his brother’s chest—who was standing in the doorway.

Smell: Entering the room, the aroma of rotten eggs let me know that I found the source of the gas leak.