Alliteration is the repetition of initial consonant sounds in two or more neighbouring words or syllables.

This phenomenon is used as a literary technique, especially in art and literature but also in more commercial
areas of language such as marketing and brand names; e.g. Dunkin Donuts, Coca Cola, Kit Kat etc.
Alliteration is often used in idiomatic expressions, often, but not always, to express a comparison of some
kind; e.g. Have you been sunbathing? You are as brown as a berry.

bee cheese chips cucumber doornail ditch water fit fiddle

gold injury joy molehill punch rain thieves wear

Place the words in the box above into the appropriate gaps below.

1. It was a really boring exhibition. Most people said it was as dull as _________ ___________.

2. Shelia always says that her children are badly behaved. Her mother, however, always tells us that they
are as good as ___________ when they visit her.

3. He is very active for somebody in their 90s. He has a full agenda and gets up very early to try and get
everything done. He is as busy as a ___________.

4. She had been out for more than 24 hours at a rave in a field in Cambridgeshire. She really looked the
worse for ___________ when she finally got home this morning.

5. They both had terrible colds but when Monday morning came they were both as right as
___________ and decided to go to school.

6. They both had terrible colds but when Monday morning came they were both fighting ___________
and decided to go to school.

7. Bob is the most laid-back person youll ever meet and definitely not the nervous type. Nothing
bothers him in a crisis. Hes as cool as a ___________.

8. I really dont understand why they are such good friends. They both have completely different
political opinions, different tastes in music, fashion, food, culture, and even friends. They really are as
different as chalk from ___________.

9. He was very happy when his team won the cup. He was literally jumping for ___________.

10. Tanya swears she saw her grandmother sitting in the garden the other day but thats impossible. Her
grandmother has been as dead as a ___________ for more than 5 years now.

11. We had a great holiday and didnt even spend all that much money. The hotel and local restaurants
and bars were all as cheap as ___________.

12. I sometimes worry about mother living in that enormous house with all those stairs, but she assures
me that she is as fit as a ___________ and has no trouble climbing them.

13. I dont know why he is so angry about the neighbours tree being so tall. It doesnt block out all that
much light at all. Hes making a mountain out of a ___________.

14. Her parents were as pleased as ___________ when she told them that she had passed all her exams.

15. John hasnt told anybody why he and his brother arent taking to each other. He hasnt even told Jim,
which is strange. They are normally as thick as ___________, that pair.

16. They laid everybody off with no notice and to add insult to ___________ they did it by text message.

Now give a brief definition for each of the expressions above.

1. It was a really boring exhibition. Most people said it was as dull as ditch water.

2. Shelia always says that her children are badly behaved. Her mother, however, always tells us that
they are as good as gold when they visit her.

3. He is very active for somebody in their 90s. He has a full agenda and gets up very early to try and get
everything done. He is as busy as a bee.

4. She had been out for more than 24 hours at a rave in a field in Cambridgeshire. She really looked the
worse for wear when she finally got home this morning.

5. They both had terrible colds but when Monday morning came they were both as right as rain and
decided to go to school.

6. They both had terrible colds but when Monday morning came they were both fighting fit and
decided to go to school.

7. Bob is the most laid-back person youll ever meet and definitely not the nervous type. Nothing
bothers him in a crisis. Hes as cool as a cucumber.

8. I really dont understand why they are such good friends. They both have completely different
political opinions, different tastes in music, fashion, food, culture, and even friends. They really are as
different as chalk from cheese.

9. He was very happy when his team won the cup. He was literally jumping for joy.

10. Tanya swears she saw her grandmother sitting in the garden the other day but thats impossible.
Her grandmother has been as dead as a doornail for more than 5 years now.

11. We had a great holiday and didnt even spend all that much money. The hotel and local restaurants
and bars were all as cheap as chips.

12. I sometimes worry about mother living in that enormous house with all those stairs, but she
assures me that she is as fit as a fiddle and has no trouble climbing them.

13. I dont know why he is so angry about the neighbours tree being so tall. It doesnt block out all that
much light at all. Hes making a mountain out of a molehill.

14. Her parents were as pleased as punch when she told them that she had passed all her exams.

15. John hasnt told anybody why he and his brother arent taking to each other. He hasnt even told
Jim, which is strange. They are normally as thick as thieves, that pair.

16. They laid everybody off with no notice and to add insult to injury they did it by text message.

Now use the expressions above in a different sentence.