Figurative Language – Complete Guide with Definitions
and Examples for Students
alliteration - the repetition of beginning sounds
simile - comparing two things using like or as
hyperbole - extreme exaggeration
metaphor - comparing two things without using like or as
oxymoron - two contradictory words joined together
idiom - a commonly used phrase or expression whose literal meaning is different from its
figurative meaning
personification - giving human qualities to inanimate objects
onomatopoeia - the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named
simile - the sun is as yellow as a lemon
idiom - break a leg
metaphor - the clouds are a ball of cotton
alliteration - busy as a bee
onomatopoeia - boom
hyperbole - I am so hungry that I could eat a horse!
metaphor - he is a walking dictionary
oxymoron - tiny giant
idiom - sick as dog
and Examples for Students
alliteration - the repetition of beginning sounds
simile - comparing two things using like or as
hyperbole - extreme exaggeration
metaphor - comparing two things without using like or as
oxymoron - two contradictory words joined together
idiom - a commonly used phrase or expression whose literal meaning is different from its
figurative meaning
personification - giving human qualities to inanimate objects
onomatopoeia - the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named
simile - the sun is as yellow as a lemon
idiom - break a leg
metaphor - the clouds are a ball of cotton
alliteration - busy as a bee
onomatopoeia - boom
hyperbole - I am so hungry that I could eat a horse!
metaphor - he is a walking dictionary
oxymoron - tiny giant
idiom - sick as dog
