Figurative Language in Poetry
SIMILES & METAPHORS
DEFINITIONS: Define each of the following terms.
Simile: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 walks like a duck
 as strong as an ox
 looks like a dream
 as straight as an arrow
 signs like the wind
 as wide as a barn door
Metaphor: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 She is dynamite on the basketball court. (She’s a good player.
 He is a walking encyclopedia. (He knows about many subjects.)
 His stomach was a bottomless pit. (He couldn’t eat enough to fill him up.)
There are three types of metaphors:
Direct Metaphor: _______________________________________________________________________________________________
Implied Metaphor: _____________________________________________________________________________________________
Extended Metaphor: ___________________________________________________________________________________________
Mixed Metaphor: _______________________________________________________________________________________________
PRACTICE: Underline the two items that are being compared in each of the following sentences, and then
determine whether the comparison is a simile or a metaphor. Then explain the meaning of the comparison.
(1) He’s got a brain like a calculator. _______________________________________________________________________________
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(2) The cabin by the lake is an icebox at night. ____________________________________________________________________
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(3) During the exam, time moved as slowly as molasses. ________________________________________________________
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(4) My grandmother’s computer is a dinosaur. ___________________________________________________________________
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(5) Ashlee runs as fast as greased lightning. _______________________________________________________________________
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(6) Life is like a roller coaster. ______________________________________________________________________________________
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Figurative Language in Poetry
PERSONIFICATION & HYPERBOLES
DEFINITIONS: Define each of the following terms.
Personification: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 Lightning danced across the sky. (Lightning lit the entire sky up.)
 Fear knocked on the door. (Fear was very close.)
 The wind whispered softly in the night. (The wind softly blew.)
Hyperbole:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 That textbook weighs a ton. (The textbook is heavy.)
 I could sleep for a year. (I am very tired.)
 I’ve told you a million times to stop lying! (I’ve told you a lot of times to stop lying.)
PRACTICE: Determine whether each of the following statements is an example of personification or a
hyperbole. Then explain the meaning of that figure of speech.
(1) The big full moon guided me through the forest. _____________________________________________________________
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(2) The old car groaned as it made its way down the long open road. __________________________________________
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(3) When someone volunteers to do community service, he/she becomes a superhero. _____________________
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(4) The leaves raced to the ground as the children ran across the playground. ________________________________
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(5) Her explanation was as clear as mud. __________________________________________________________________________
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(6) I will die if he asks me to dance! ________________________________________________________________________________
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(7) The camera absolutely loves Anna. ____________________________________________________________________________
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(8) Our star athlete is as fast as lighting. ___________________________________________________________________________
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(9) When we returned from our vacation, it was obvious that our flowers were begging for water. ________
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Figurative Language in Poetry
PUNS & ONOMATOPOEIAS
DEFINITIONS: Define each of the following terms.
Pun: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 I work as a baker because I knead dough.
 The difference between a conductor and a teacher is that the conductor minds the
train, and a teacher trains the mind.
 Seen on a plumber’s truck: “A flush beats a full house!”
Onomatopoeia: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 Listen to the bee buzz by.
 “Cock-a-doodle-doo!” cried the rooster.
 The clock goes “tick-tock.”
PRACTICE: Underline the word that the pun focuses on. Then explain the pun on the line provided.
(1) I recently spent money on a substance to unclog my kitchen sink. It was just money down the drain.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
(2) Our social studies teacher says that her globe means the world to her. ____________________________________
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(3) A dog not only has a fur coat but also pants. __________________________________________________________________
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(4) Sir Lancelot once had a very bad dream about his horse. It was a knight mare. ___________________________
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(5) Corduroy pillows are making headlines. ______________________________________________________________________
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PRACTICE: Underline the onomatopoeia in each of the following sentences.
(1) Don't beep that horn again.
(4) Drip, drip, drip, went the faucet all day long.
(2) The pig squealed.
(7) Baa, baa wailed the sheep.
Figurative Language in Poetry
ALLITERATION & ASSONANCE
DEFINITIONS: Define each of the following terms.
Alliteration: _________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 Benjamin Barker loves to bake buns and biscuits and buttery cakes.
 Phyllis is a famous photographer.
 The sun sizzled the swimmer’s skin.
Assonance: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 Anna’s nanna asked for bananas and apples.
 I made my way to the lake.
 Little kids will throw big fits.
PRACTICE: Determine whether each sentence or stanza contains examples of alliteration or assonance.
Then underline the letter(s) that exemplify that.
(1)
_______________
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling, my darling, my life and my bride.
(2)
_______________
Hear the mellow wedding-bells/Golden bells!
(3)
_______________
And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me — filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before…
(4)
_______________
And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
(5)
_______________
Whereat, with blade, with bloody blameful blade,
He bravely breach'd his boiling bloody breast.
(6)
_______________
Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom friend to the maturing sun,
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eaves run
(7)
_______________
…sidelong flowing flakes that flock, pause, and renew and sinister and furtive:
Pale flakes with fingering stealth come feeling for our faces
Figurative Language in Poetry
IDIOMS, PARADOXES & OXYMORONS
DEFINITIONS: Define each of the following terms.
Idiom: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 She really has a chip on her shoulder. (She’s upset about something.
 Missing the bus was a blessing in disguise. (Something good that wasn’t seen at first.)
 That test was a piece of cake. (It was very easy.)
Paradox: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 Jim and Della were one of the richest couples on earth. (from “The Gift of the Magi”)
 War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength. (from 1984 by George Orwell)
Oxymoron:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Examples:
 Good grief!
 A definite maybe
 Terribly pleased
 Jumbo shrimp
PRACTICE: Underline the idiom in each of the following sentences, and then explain the meaning of each idiom.
(1) Ross received a slap on the wrist for fighting at school. ______________________________________________________
(2) I believe that one day you will get a dose of your own medicine. ____________________________________________
(3) Sometimes your actions speak louder than your words. _____________________________________________________
(4) All Fran ever does is add fuel to the fire. _______________________________________________________________________
(5) Everyone says that Jerry is all bark and no bite. ______________________________________________________________
PRACTICE: Explain each of the following paradoxes.
(1) Ignorance is bliss. ________________________________________________________________________________________________
(2) What a pity that youth must be wasted on the young. _______________________________________________________
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PRACTICE: Explain why each of the following phrases is an oxymoron.
(1) a genuine imitation ______________________________________________________________________________________________
(2) just act naturally ________________________________________________________________________________________________
(3) a small crowd ____________________________________________________________________________________________________