Figurative Language : Types and Examples

Figurative Language 

What is Figurative Language? 

A language that describes something by comparing it with something else, you are using figurative language. 

Types of Figurative Language: 

• Imagery Apostrophe 
• Simile Assonance 
• Metaphor Paradox 
• Alliteration Litotes 
• Personification Oxymoron 
• Onomatopoeia Synecdoche 
• Hyperbole Symbolism 
• Idioms Antithesis                               
• Irony Metonymy 
• Euphemism 

Imagery: 

The Language that appeals to the senses. Descriptions of people or objects are stated in terms of our senses. 

• Sight 
• Hearing 
• Touch 
• Taste 
• Smell 

Simile: 

It includes a straight comparison between two unlike things, usually with the words like or as. 

Example:       

The muscles on his arms are strong as iron bands. 

Metaphor: 

A figure of speech that contrasts two, unlike things WITHOUT using the words like or as and states the comparison as if it were a fact. 

Examples: 

The voice was a bass drum echoing throughout the car. 

You are the light in my life. 

Love is a lie 

Personification: 

It gives the qualities of a person to an animal, an object, or an idea. 

Example: 

The wind cannot yell. Only a living thing can yell. 

Few More examples: 

• The wind whistled against my cheeks. 
• The sun greeted me this morning. 
• The flowers begged for water. 
• Trees bowed to the ground 
• The carved pumpkin smiled at me. 

Alliteration: 

Repeated consonant sounds start at the beginning of words or within words. 

Example: 

He was wide-eyed and wondering while he waited for Walter to wake. 

Few more Examples: 

• Cutie cat clawed her couch, creating chaos. 
• Dan’s dog dove deep into the dam, drinking dirty water as he dove. 
• Eric’s eagle eats eggs, enjoying each episode of eating. 
• Feud’s friends fried Fritos for Friday’s food. 

Onomatopoeia

The use of words that mimic sounds. 

Example: 

The firecracker made a loud ka-boom! 

Hyperbole: 

It is an exaggeration that emphasizes a point and can be ridiculous or funny. 

Examples: 

• The lottery winner’s grin stretched from New York City to Los Angeles. 
• You snore louder than a freight train 
• I have died every day waiting for you 
• It was so cold; I saw polar bears wearing jackets. 
• I am so hungry that I can eat a horse 
• I had a ton of homework 

Idioms: 

An idiom points to a construction or expression in one language that cannot be matched or directly translated word-for-word in another language. 

Example: 

You should keep your eye out for him. 

Meaning: 

To keep an eye out for someone means to watch out for them. 

Irony: 

The irony is the use of words that mean the opposite of what you really think, especially in order to be funny. 

Example: 

“This is my brilliant son who failed out of college.” 

She’s a great singer who sings like a crow. 

Euphemism: 

The substitute of an agreeable or inoffensive expression for one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant. 

Example: 

Passed away: died 

I’m busy: Leave me alone 

Your being let go: You are fired 

Metonymy: 

In metonymy, an object is designated by the name of something that is generally associated with it. 

Example: 

The crown, for kings. 

Red coats, for British soldiers. 

Antithesis: 

In antithesis, a striking opposition of words or sentiments is made in the same sentence. 

Example: 

They promised freedom and provided slavery. 

Apostrophe: 

The addressing of usually absent people or a usually personified thing rhetorically. 

Example: 

Carlye’s “O liberty, what things are done in the name. 

Litotes: 

It is affirmative that is conveyed by the negation of the opposite, the effect being to suggest a strong expression by means of a weaker one. It is the opposite of Hyperbole. 

Example: 

Not a bad singer 

Not unhappy 

Not unlike 

Assonance: 

The use of words that have similar vowel sounds near one another. 

Example: 

Summer fun 

Rise high in the bright sky. 

Paradox: 

In which a statement appears to contradict itself. 

Example: 

 “War is peace” 

 “Freedom is slavery” 

 “Ignorance is strength” 

 “My weakness is my strength.” 

Oxymoron: 

Contradictory terms appear side by side. Known as a compressed paradox. 

Example: 

Great Depression 

Criminal Justice 

Hell’s Angels 

Synecdoche: 

It is a part used to designate the whole or the whole to designate a part. 

Example: 

Give us this day our daily bread (for food) 

He has many mouths to feed. 

A ten-sail (for ten ships) 

As a creature (for a man) 

Symbolism: 

Something that represents something else by association, resemblance, or convention. 

Examples: 

A heart means love. 

Tears – emotion 

Red light means stop 

Light bulb means “new idea”