Lesson 2.

Figurative Language
Unlocking of Difficulty

1. corbeille (noun) - an elegant basket, usually filled with flowers or fruit, used for
courtship
Young men and women of high social stature would customarily not marry until the
husband-to-be could present his intended bride with a corbeille.
2. negroes (noun) - a dated word for black people, now considered offensive
Many old stories, written during the time when slavery was still prevalent, referred to
black people as negroes—a term which is now a racial slur.
3. clammy (adjective) - unpleasantly damp and cold
He was so nervous while waiting for his turn to deliver a speech that he kept wiping
his clammy hands on his pants.
Unlocking of Difficulty

4. bayou (noun) - marshy outlets near rivers and lakes in southern USA
Watching her adventures through the bayous of New Orleans was a novel experience
for people outside the USA.

5. layette (noun) - sets of clothing and linens for infants

For my baby shower, my grandmother sent me a beautiful layette she had preserved
from the time my mother was still an infant.
 Learn About It!

Figurative Language

● Analogy - a comparison that presents the similarities

between two concepts or ideas
● Cliché - a word, a phrase, a sentence, or a whole text that
used to be perceived as clever but has become démodé
● Connotation - the secondary or suggestive meaning of the
word, one that is not its literal or primary meaning in the
dictionary
 Learn About It!

● Euphemism - used to substitute for a description that is

considered harsh or blunt
● Hyperbole - a gross exaggeration to achieve an effect,
usually for humor or emphasis
● Metaphor - compares two seemingly unlike objects that
have similar or common characteristics without the use of
like or as
● Metonymy - a word or phrase that is substituted for
another that is closely associated to it
● Oxymoron - a combination of two ideas that appear to be
opposite or contradictory
 Learn About It!

● Paradox - an assertion that seems to be

contradictory or silly but actually reveals some truth
● Personification - a statement wherein an animal,
object, or abstract idea is given human attributes or
characteristics
● Simile - compares two seemingly unlike objects by
using the words like or as
● Synecdoche - used when a part of something is
used to represent the whole or vice versa
Key Points

● Figurative language or figures of speech are used to

deliver a more effective, persuasive, and impactful
message.
● They further elevate the themes and concepts
presented in literary texts.