Simile and
Metaphors
Simile
Comparison of two DIFFERENT things
using “like” or “as”
THINK
Sim-i-like
USING “Like”
moves like a snake
 smooth like silk
 strong like an ox
 wise like an owl
 ran like the wind

USING “As”








as big as an elephant
as clean as a whistle
as free as a bird
as easy as ABC
as hard as nails
as light as air
as solid as a rock
as snug as a bug in a rug
Similes in Songs
Like a plastic bag drifting through the wind
 You make me smile like the sun, sing like
a bird, sing like a record
 Truth spreads just like a fire
 Slips off your tongue like turpentine

Metaphor
Comparison of two UNLIKE things with
something important in common.
Metaphor
A metaphor carries more power than a
simile because it’s direct.
 A simile is like another thing
 A metaphor IS another thing

Metaphor Examples










He’s an ogre.
You are my sunshine.
This school is a zoo.
He is a hog.
You have a heart of gold.
The noise is music to my ears.
You are the light of my life.
My memory is a little foggy.
Love is a camera, full of memories.
Strength and dignity are her clothing
Metaphors in Songs








I am a mountain.
I am a tall tree.
I am a swift wind.
She’s confetti falling from the sky.
It’s a marshmallow world in the winter.
You are my lifesaver.
You are the thunder.
I am the lightning.
Convert Similes to Metaphors
Simile: My room is as cold as ice.
Metaphor: My room is an icebox.
Simile: I am as hungry as a horse.
Metaphor: I am a horse, hungry enough to
eat the jumbo burger.
“I am” Poem
I’m
a pogo
stick.
Very energetic.
Jumping up and
down.
People are
always looking
at me, trying
to
calm
me down.
But I’ll always be energetic
And active.
Onomatopoeia
Words that mimic sounds
SOUNDS
Nature (whoosh, splash, boom)
 Animals (roar, moo, grr, honk)
 Made by Hands and Feet (stomp, clap,
snap, pat
 Made with Percussion (rat-a-tat)
(tsst-tuh-tah)
 Object Sounds (blip, crack, tick-tock)

Action Idioms
Rock the boat
 Hit the road
 Fell through the cracks
 Beat around the bush
 Climbing the walls
 Read between the lines

Animal Idioms
Hold your horses
 Bull in a china shop
 Top dog
 Other fish to fry

Idioms Using Color
Caught red-handed
 Out of the blue
 Silver lining
 Yellow-bellied

Idioms About Food
Going bananas
 Piece of cake
 Couch potato
 Out to lunch

Body Part Idioms








Keep your eyes peeled
Heart of gold
Winged feet
The answer is right under your nose
Stuff our faces
Pain in the neck
Get on your toes
Keep your chin up
Idiom Day – November 2
9th period
 Dress up like an idiom
 Your costume must fit over your clothes

Idioms That Are Similes or
Metaphors
Like two peas in a pod
 Lips are sealed

The Verb is the Key
Personifying Objects
The lights blinked in the distance
 My computer hates me.
 The trees are begging for water.
 The flowers nodded their heads.
 Shadows dance in the flame.

Personifying Concepts
Time marches on.
 March grabbed April by the scruff of the
neck.
 Fear crept into my mind.

Personifying Animals
The birds expressed their joy.
 The groundhog hovered indecisively.
 The cow jumped over the moon

And-And-And Analogy
An extended metaphor that points out
multiple shared characteristics.
House Like a Museum
Rooms are full of antiques and knickknacks
 The hallways are quiet
 Walls are covered with paintings
 People come and go

Life is a Mystery
You never know what’s going to happen
next
 Sometimes you find clues
 Bad things happen and you don’t know
why or who or how
 There are hidden secrets

Life is like a River
It keeps going, flowing
 There are curves and bends where you
can’t see what’s coming up
 It’s refreshing and alive with life
 It can be deep or shallow, calm and quiet
or rapid and wild

Extend Similes and Metaphors to
Create Analogies
A gang of boys is like a pack of wolves
 A sword is the weapon of a warrior; a pen
is the weapon of a writer
 A doctor’s diagnostic method is like a
detective’s investigation
 A caterpillar grows out of its cocoon and
we must grow out of our comfort zone

Common sayings










I’m starving! I could eat a cow!
He’s been here a hundred times.
I’ll die from embarrassment.
She has tons of money.
I’ve told you a million times to stop!
The day lasted forever.
The line went on for miles.
This thing weighs a ton!
There must be a million mosquitoes out here
It costs about a million dollars to go there.
Lyrics in Songs
“Cause you know I’d walk a thousand
miles if I could just see you tonight.”
 “You would not believe your eyes if ten
million fireflies lit up the world as I fell
asleep.”
 “Though I’ve loved you for a million years.”

Funny Animal Puns
The best way to communicate with fish is
to drop them a line.
 How do you stop a charging bull? Take
away his credit card.
 If you throw a cat out of the car, does it
become kitty litter?

Jokes
Knock, Knock Jokes
 Bad Jokes
 Signs and Advertisements
Taco Bell: Need a Job? Let’s Taco Bout It
Ex-Stink Sewer & Drainage

Your Challenge
Find TEARABLE Puns and
Fill Our Class Poster
Common Examples
Jumbo shrimp
 Organized mess
 Sweet tart
 Sweet & sour
 Pretty ugly
 Virtual reality
 Act naturally
 Big baby

More Common Examples










Random order
Original copy
Great Depression
Run slowly
Small crowd
Big baby
Awfully good
Low fat
Mud bath
Least favorite
Oxymorons in Songs and Ads
“Cruel to be Kind” Nick Lowe
 “Solid Air” John Martyn
 “Hello, Goodbye” The Beatles
 Ad on TV or radio that plays soft rock
 Sports – A light heavyweight boxer
 “Old news”

Common Examples








Passed away
Between jobs
Bun in the oven
Correctional facility
Full bodied
Lose your lunch
Pre-owned
Remains
Literary Excerpts
“…she seems to be nine bricks shy of a
load.” Lawn Boy
 “And you think somewhere inside that
brain a screw came loose.” Lawn Boy
 “Our house was a small fixer-upper.” Lawn
Boy

Your Challenge
Find Euphemisms in Every Day Life
Hint:
Greeting Cards
Newspaper, Magazine or Online Articles
Common Examples






This is the beginning of the end.
Please ignore the notice.
They must go to war to make peace.
Nobody goes to that restaurant. It’s too crowded.
Don’t go near water until you’ve learned to swim.
If you get this message, call me; if you don’t,
than don’t worry about it.
Paradox in Songs
“Oh, Susanna!”
It rained all night the day I left, the weather it
was dry. The sun so hot, I froze to death.
“My Back Pages”
Ah, but I was so much older then, I’m
younger than that now.
Verbal Irony
Your explanation is clear as mud.
 The cloth is as smooth as sandpaper.
 A pack-a-day smoker said, “Eating too
much red meat is detrimental to your
health.”

Situational Irony
Gift of the Magi
Ironic Situations
A thief’s house getting robbed while he is
robbing someone else’s house.
 Students doing a recycling project using
lots of paper to create flyers, then planting
a tree.
NOW YOU TRY!

Allusions Are Commonly Made To:
A well-known place
 Nursery rhymes
 Mythology
 Folklore
 Superheros
 Historical characters
 Well-known literature

Common Examples
If the shoe fits, wear it.
 Blood is thicker than water.
 Be careful what you wish for.
 You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.
 Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.
 Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
 A job worth doing is worth doing well.

More Examples
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
 A watched pot never boils.
 A stumble may prevent a fall.
 All good things come to those who wait.
 A journey of a thousand miles begins with
a single step.

What does the addage mean?
Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
 Six of one, half a dozen of the other.
 Don’t count your chickens before they’re
hatched.
 Don’t cross that bridge until you get to it.
www.enchantedlearning.com
www.murphys-laws.com

In Brand Names
Dunkin’ Donuts
 PayPal
 Best Buy
 Coca-Cola
 Chuckee Cheese’s
 Bed Bath & Beyond
 Krispy Kreme

In Famous Names








Ronald Reagan
Sammy sosa
Jesse Jackson
Mickey Mouse
Marilyn Monroe
Fred Flintstone
Spongebob Squarepants
Seattle Seahawks
In phrases and quotes
Busy as a bee
 Dead as a doornail
 Good as gold
 Last laugh
 Make a mountain out of a molehill

Year-End Awards
Accentuate the Positive