Figure of Speech Examples

A figure of speech is a word or phrase that has a meaning something different than its literal
meaning. It can be a metaphor orsimile that is designed to further explain a concept. Or, it can be a
different way of pronouncing a word or phrase such as withalliteration to give further meaning or a
different sound.

Examples of Figures of Speech

Using Alliteration
Alliteration is the repetition of beginning sounds. Examples are:
 Sally sells seashells.
 Walter wondered where Winnie was.
 Blue baby bonnets
 Nick needed notebooks.
 Fred fried frogs.
Using Anaphora
Anaphora is a technique where several phrases or verses begin with the same word or words.
Examples are:
 I came, I saw, I conquered - Julius Caesar
 Mad world! Mad kings! Mad composition! King John - William Shakespeare
 We laughed, we loved, we sang
 With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, - Abraham Lincoln
 We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. - Winston Churchill
Using Assonance
Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in words that are close together. Examples are:
 A - For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels named Lenore (Poe)
 E - Therefore all seasons shall be sweet to thee (Coleridge)
 I - From what I’ve tasted of desire, I hold with those who favor fire (Frost)
 O - Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn (Wordsworth)
 U - Uncertain rustling of each purple curtain (Poe)
Using a Euphemism
Euphemism is a word or phrase that replaces a word or phrase to make it more polite or pleasant.
Examples are:
 A little thin on top instead of bald
 Homeless instead of bum
 Letting him go instead of fired him
 Passed away instead of died
 Put to sleep instead of euthanize

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Using Hyperbole
Hyperbole uses exaggeration for emphasis or effect. Examples are:
 I’ve told you a hundred times
 It cost a billion dollars
 I could do this forever
 She is older than dirt
 Everybody knows that
Using Irony
Irony is using words where the meaning is the opposite of their usual meaning. Examples are:
 After begging for a cat and finally getting one, she found out she was allergic.
 A traffic cop gets suspended for not paying his parking tickets.
 The Titanic was said to be unsinkable.
 Dramatic irony is knowing the killer is hiding in a closet in a scary movie.
 Naming a Chihuahua Brutus
Using Metaphor
Metaphor compares two unlike things or ideas. Examples are:
 Heart of stone
 Time is money
 The world is a stage
 She is a night owl
 He is an ogre
Using Onomatopoeia
Onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like what it is describing. Examples are:
 Whoosh
 Splat
 Buzz
 Click
 Oink
Using Oxymoron
Oxymoron is two contradictory terms used together. Examples are:
 Peace force
 Kosher ham
 Jumbo shrimp
 Small crowd
 Free market
Using Personification
Personification is giving human qualities to non-living things or ideas. Examples are:

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 The flowers nodded
 Snowflakes danced
 Thunder grumbled
 Fog crept in
 The wind howled
Using Simile
Simile is a comparison between two unlike things using the words "like" or "as." Examples are:
 As slippery as an eel
 Like peas in a pod
 As blind as a bat
 Eats like a pig
 As wise as an owl
Using Synecdoche
Synecdoche is when a part represents the whole or the whole is represented by a part. Examples are:
 Wheels - a car
 The police - one policeman
 Plastic - credit cards
 Coke - any cola drink
 Army - a soldier
Using Understatement
Understatement is when something is said to make something appear less important or less serious.
Examples are:
 It's just a scratch - referring to a large dent
 It is sometimes dry and sandy - referring to the driest desert in the world
 The weather is a little cooler today - referring to sub-zero temperatures
 I won’t say it was delicious - referring to terrible food
 The tsunami caused some damage - referring to a huge tsunami
These examples of figures of speech were selected to show a wide variety of types of words. 


List of Figure of Speech and Examples

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Alliteration
This is a very common figure of speech that involves using words that begin
with the same sound. 

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For instance, “Sally sells sea shells by the seashore” is alliteration – and try
saying it fast to see how difficult it is! It is often used in advertising slogans to
create something catchy that more people will remember. 

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Anaphora
This figure of speech uses a specific clause at the beginning of each sentence
or point to make a statement. 

For instance: “Good night and good luck” is an example of the beginning word
being the same. The more it is used, the more of an emotional effect is can
evoke among those who are listening. Another example is "Mad world! Mad
kings! Mad composition!" from King John, II, I by William Shakespeare. 

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Assonance
Remember the phrase “I Like Ike”? It was a very common phase for those
who supported Dwight Eisenhower during his presidential run. This is a figure
of speech that focuses on the vowel sounds in a phrase, repeating them over
and over to great effect. 

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Hyperbole
“It was as big as a mountain! It was faster than a cheetah! It was dumber than
a rock!” This figure of speech makes things seem much bigger than they really
were by using grandiose depictions of everyday things. Hyperbole is often
seen as an exaggeration that adds a bit of humor to a story. 

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Irony
This figure of speech tries to use a word in a literal sense that debunks what
has just been said. “Gentlemen, you can’t fight in here! This is the War
Room!” from Dr. Strangelove is a great example. It is often used to poke fun at
a situation that everyone else sees as a very serious matter. 

There are different types of irony and here are the details and examples. 

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Metaphor
The use of metaphor compares two things that are not alike and finds
something about them to make them alike.

“My heart is a lonely hunter that hunts on a lonely hill” from a book by William
Sharp is a good example of metaphor. Some writers try to use this style to
create something profound out of comparing two things that appear to have
nothing at all in common. 

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Simile

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In this figure of speech, two things are compared that are not really the same,
but are used to make a point about each other. 

“Life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re going to get” is a
famous line from the movie Forrest Gump that illustrates the simile. This is
often used to make an emotional point about something. The difference
between simile and metaphor is that you can obviously see words "like" in the
sentence. 

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Metonymy
In this figure of speech, one word that has a very similar meaning can be used
for another. Using the word “crown” for “royalty” or “lab coats” for “scientists”
are two examples. In some ways it can be seen as a nickname for something
else; for instance, “The White House said” doesn’t actually mean the White
House said it (a house can’t speak!) but that the President said it. However,
we all understand the meaning, and so the words are interchangeable. 

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Onomatopoeia
This is the use of a word that actually sounds like what it means. Good
examples include “hiss” or “ding-dong” or “fizz.” These words are meant to
describe something that actually sounds very much like the word itself. This is
a trick often used in advertising to help convey what something is really like. 

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Paradox
This figure of speech completely contradicts itself in the same sentence.
Famous quotes that illustrate this from George Orwell’s “1984” include: “War
is peace. Ignorance is strength. Freedom is slavery.” Though we know these

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things aren’t true, they present an interesting paradox that makes a person
think seriously about what they have just read or heard. 

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Personification
This is a way of giving an inanimate object the qualities of a living thing. “The
tree quaked with fear as the wind approached” is an example; “The sun
smiled down on her” is another. This can sometimes be used to invoke an
emotional response to something by making it more personable, friendly and
relatable. 

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Pun
This play on words uses different senses of the word, or different sounds that
make up the word, to create something fun and interesting. For instance: “I
would like to go to Holland some day. Wooden shoe?” is a pun that actually
means “wouldn’t you?” Sometimes puns are so subtle that they can be tough
to pick up unless you are really listening for them. 

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Synecdoche
This is a figure of speech in which one thing is meant to represent the whole.
A few good examples include “ABCs” for alphabet, “new set of wheels” for car,
or “9/11” to demonstrate the whole of the tragedy that happened in the United

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States on September 11, 2001. This is often used in journalism as a type of
shorthand. 

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Understatement
This is a situation in which the thing discussed is made to seem much less
important than it really is. This famous line from Catcher in the Rye is a good
example: “I have to have this operation. It isn’t very serious. I have this tiny
tumor on the brain.” Understatement can often be used to comedic effect. 

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Antithesis
This is a contradiction that pits two ideas against each other in a balanced
way. “You’re easy on the eyes, hard on the heart” is a line from a country
song that illustrates this perfectly. This is often used to indicate just how
something can be more than one thing at the same time. 

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Euphemism

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Words that are used to soften the message are often considered
euphemisms. “Passed away” is often used in place of “died” or “killed.” A
“misunderstanding” might be used in place of “fight” or “argument.” And who
could forget “wardrobe malfunction,” which is a fancy way of saying “your
clothes fell off.” 

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Oxymoron
This puts two words together that seem to contradict each other. “Military
intelligence,” “real phony,” “civil war,” and “silent yell” are all examples of an
oxymoron. Many people use these to promote the humor in a situation.