FIGURE OF SPEECH & LITERARY DEVICES

Hyperbole is a figure of speech that utilizes extreme exaggeration to emphasize a certain quality

or feature.

 I have a million things to do.

 This suitcase weighs a ton.
 This room is an ice-box.
 Garbage to them is gold.

A paradox is a figure of speech that appears to be self-contradictory but actually reveals

something truthful.

 You have to spend money to save it.

 What I’ve learned is that I know nothing.

A pun is a figure of speech that contains a “play” on words, such as using words that mean one
thing to mean something else or words that sound alike in as a means of changing meaning.

 A sleeping bull is called a bull-dozer.

 Baseball players eat on home plates.
 Polar bears vote at the North Poll.
 Fish are smart because they travel in schools.
 One bear told another that life without them would be grizzly.

An oxymoron is a figure of speech that connects two opposing ideas, usually in two-word
phrases, to create a contradictory effect.

 open secret
 Alone together
 true lies
 controlled chaos
 pretty ugly

Simile is a figure of speech in which two dissimilar things are compared to each other using the
terms “like” or “as.”

 She’s as pretty as a picture.

 I’m pleased as punch.

A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two different things without the use of the terms
“like” or “as.”

 He is a fish out of water.

 She is a star in the sky.
Euphemism is a figure of speech that refers to figurative language designed to replace words or
phrases that would otherwise be considered harsh, impolite, or unpleasant.

 Last night, Joe’s grandfather passed away (died).

 I need to powder my nose (go to the bathroom).
 Our company has decided to let you go (fire you).

Personification is a figure of speech that attributes human characteristics to something that is not
human.

 I heard the wind whistling.

 The water danced across my window.

In transferred epithets, the qualifying objective is transferred from a person to a thing as in

phrases. For example, “sleepless night”, “sunburn mirth”, and “melodious plain”.

Irony or sarcasm : In this mode of speech, the real meanings of the words used are different
from the intended meanings. For example, the child of cobbler has no shoe.
In antithesis, a striking opposition or contrast of words is made in the same sentence in order to
secure emphasis. For example,

 To err is human, to forgive divine.

 Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice.
Oxymoron : It is a figure of speech which combines two seemingly contradictory or
incongruous words for sharp emphasis or effect. For example,
 “darkness visible” (Milton);
 “make haste slowly” (Suetonius)
 “loving hate” (Romeo and Juliet)
Alliteration: The repetition of the same syllable at the beginning of two or more words is called
alliteration. For example,
 By apt Alliteration’s artful- ‘a’ is repeated
 Glittering through the gloomy. ‘g’ is repeated
 The furrow follows-‘f’ is repeated 
Onomatopoeia: The formation of a word whose sound is made to suggest or echo the sense as in
cuckoo, bang, growl, hiss.
 The moan of doves in immemorial elms and murmur of innumerable bees.

Imagery is a literary device that refers to the use of figurative language to evoke a sensory
experience or create a picture with words for a reader. By utilizing effective descriptive language
and figures of speech, writers appeal to a reader’s senses of sight, taste, smell, touch, and sound,
as well as internal emotion and feelings. Therefore, imagery is not limited to visual
representations or mental images, but also includes physical sensations and internal emotions.
For example, the description of the classroom in “Elementary classroom in a slum”
Symbolism combines a lot of the ideas presented in metaphor and imagery. Essentially, a symbol
is the use of an object to represent a concept—it’s kind of like a metaphor, except more concise!
Symbols are everywhere in the English language, and we often use these common literary
devices in speech and design without realizing it. The following are very common examples of
symbolism:

A few very commonly used symbols include:

 “Peace” represented by a white dove

 “Love” represented by a red rose
 “Conformity” represented by sheep
 “Idea” represented by a light bulb switching on.

An allegory is a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning,
typically a moral or political one.
"Pilgrim's Progress is an allegory of the spiritual journey"