FIGURES OFOF

FIGURES SPEECH
SPEECH
SIMILE P HO R
META
UNDERSTAT
EMENT
HYPERBOLE
N Y
IRO
PERSO
NIFICA
ON OM TION
ATOPO
EIA
 Simile
Comparing two unlike things using like or
as

Example:
We bear her along like a pearl on a string.

She sways like a flower.

His temper was as explosive as a volcano.
 Metaphor
A direct comparison between two unlike
things that actually have something
important in common.
Example:
The boy was a fish in the water.

You are my sunshine.

Jenny is a lion in the zoo.
 Metaphor vs. Simile
Use the following examples to figure out the
definition of metaphor.

Simile: Mike is like a teddy bear.

Simile: Mike is as soft as a teddy bear.
Metaphor: Mike is a teddy bear.

Simile: That boy is like a pig.

Simile: That boy is as messy as a pig.
Metaphor: That boy is a pig.
 Hyperbole
A major exaggeration or overstatement
used to emphasize a point or add humor.
Example:
My backpack weighs a ton.
The wolf was 100 feet high.
I’ve told you a million times!
 Understatement
deliberately making a situation seem less
important or serious than it is
Example:
I’ll be there in one second.
This won’t hurt a bit.
A drop of water will satisfy my thirst.
 Onomatopoeia
When you see this: You often hear this:

Buzz and ring are both examples of onomatopoeia.

 Onomatopoeia
When you see this: You often hear this:
 Onomatopoeia
Figure of speech that uses a word which
imitates a sound.
Example:
The sheep went, “Baa.”
My brother can burp the alphabet.
The clanging pots and pans awoke the baby.
 Personification
Giving human traits or characteristics to
something that isn’t human, such as
animals, objects or non-living things
Example:
The willow tree shook her long hair.
The car danced across the icy road.
The stars in the clear night sky winked at me.
the difference between:
• what is said and what is meant
• what is said and what actually occurs
• between the meaning and what is
understood
 Verbal Irony is :
REMEMBER… A figure of speech in which
what is said, is the opposite
of what is meant.

“That sock smells like roses” after

it has been sitting in a gym locker
for three months.
 More examples:
ht!
h , r ig
Yea
• The elephant is too small that it wouldn’t fit inside
the refrigerator.
• I failed the exam because it was too easy.
• She looks even better if she shaves her head.
• John is so handsome that all the girls he likes
dump him.
 Is it a comparison between two things?

Yes No
Does it use “like” or “as”? Are they exaggerating
too much or too little?
Yes No
Yes No
Simile Metaphor
Object or idea doing
?
human things?
Too Much? Too Little?
No Yes
Hyperbole Understatement
Personification
Identify the figure of
speech being used
in the sentence/s.
1. Our dog usually
barks when visitors
arrive.
2. I reeled and shivered
earthward like a
feather.
3. A teacher failed a
test.
4. He is a pearl within
an oyster shell.
One of the richest of
the deep;
5. He spent his
paycheck on lottery
tickets.
6. Jenna ran around
the lunchroom 
squealing like a pig.
7. I like pizza.
8. The water vendor
died of thirst!
9. My house is a million
miles from here.
10. Knowledge is a
kingdom and all who
learn are kings and
queens.
11. A marriage
counselor filed for
divorce.
12. Can I have one of
your chips?
13. A flag wags like a
fish hook there in the
sky.
14. The horse’s hooves 
clip-clopped on the
cobblestones.
15. Can I see you for a
second?
16. An atheist sues for
religious
discrimination.
17. The tree bowed
and waved to me in
the wind.
18. I’m so hungry I
could eat a horse!
19. A good laugh is
sunshine in a house.
20. Friends are like
parachutes. If they
aren’t there the first
time you need them,
chances are, you won’t
be needing them again.
Wait there’s more...
 FIGURES OF SPEECH
FIGURES SPEECH
METONYMY SYNECDOCHE
APOSTROPHE ALLEGORY
PUN ASSONANCE
CHIASMUS LITOTES
PARADOX CONSONANCE
X Y M ORO N AN T I T H ES IS
O
THESIS ANAPHORA
 Oxymoron
A figure of speech in which incongruous or
contradictory terms appear side by side.
Example:
Do you have the original copies that we asked?

His new girlfriend really is pretty ugly.

Parting is such sweet sorrow.
• Open secret • Exact • Only choice
• Act naturally estimate • Clearly
• Found missing • Larger half confused
• Deafening • Alone • Working
silence together holiday
• Advanced • Liquid gas • Hell’s Angels
basic • Definite • Living dead
• Virtual reality maybe • Unbiased
• Pretty ugly • Tragic comedy opinion
• Seriously • Constant • Original
funny variable copies
• Almost • Extinct life • Genuine
exactly • Same imitation
difference
 Metonymy
one word or phrase is substituted for
another with which it's closely associated
(function, quality, characteristic,ability); the
rhetorical strategy of describing something
indirectly by referring to things around it.
Example:
"The pen is mightier than the sword."
Here comes Queen Elizabeth.
Mary is known to be the Maria Clara in class.
 Metonymy
•CROWN
Crown - in place of a royal person

•THE
TheWHITE
WhiteHOUSE
Hous - in place of the
President, his duties, and other
inclinations
• THE
TheSUITS
suits - - in place of business people
who work in the office
 Metonymy
•EYES
Eyes - for sight
Pen
PEN- - for the written word
•SWORD
Sword - for military might
•SILVER
SilverFOX
fox - for an attractive older man
•HAND
Hand - for help
BREAD - Food
BOOTS
-soldiers
BOOTS
 Synecdoche
A synecdoche may use part of something to
represent the entire whole. (the material that
composes the whole thing)
It may use an entire whole thing to represent
aExample:
part of it.  
His parents bought him a new set of wheels.
All hands on deck.
He has many mouths to feed.
• Roof- house
• Hand/head/mouth/eyes- person
• Wheels/steering wheel- car
• World- a great number of people
• Library- staff working in it
• Restaurant- people working in it
• Team Leader- whole team
• A container is used to refer to its
contents
Countrymen, lend me your ears.

Shut it. There are ears around us.

Be careful with your actions. There
are eyes everywhere.
You’ll always be beautiful in my
eyes.
 I am asking for your hand in
marriage.
I am working on a project. I need a
hand.
• The primary school teachers work
in a zoo.

• The kids are very excited to see

the zoo.
She was considered the brain of
the team.
How many brains worked for
this proposal?