Name ___________________________________ Block _________
Figurative Language
Literal Language – when the speaker or writer says
exactly what something is.
Figurative Language – when the speaker or writer does
not say exactly what something is. Instead, they use tools
like similes and hyperbole to create an image or suggest an
idea.
1. Simile - compares two things that are not alike
using like or as.
Her horse ran like lightning.
2. Metaphor - compares two things that are not alike
without using like or as.
Her horse is a bolt of lightning.
3. Personification - gives human qualities to animals,
ideas and objects.
The wind howled.
4. Hyperbole - extreme exaggeration.
I tried a thousand times.
5. Alliteration – repeated use of the same consonant
sound at the beginning of a group of words.
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Name ___________________________________ Block _________
6. Onomatopoeia - a word which imitates a noise or
action.
The fly buzzed past.
7. Idiom - an expression that has a meaning that is
different than the literal meaning.
I’ve got a frog in my throat.
8. Cliché - A word or phrase that has become overly
familiar or commonplace.
No pain, no gain.
She’s as cute as a button.
9. Pun - a play on words; the use of a word in such a
way that the use suggests multiple meanings, or suggests
the meaning of another word that sounds similar.
Niagara Falls but never breaks.
To write with a broken pencil is pointless.
Knowing how to interpret figurative language helps
readers better understand and enjoy what they read.