"Say What You Mean" Simile and Metaphor
“She was as busy as a bee.” What kind of figurative language is this?
Simile
“Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.” What type of figurative language?
Alliteration
What is personification?
Giving human traits to nonhuman things
What does “break a leg” mean?
Good luck
What is imagery?
Language that appeals to the five senses
“The classroom was a zoo.” What is being compared here?
The classroom is being compared to a zoo
What does onomatopoeia mean?
A word that imitates a sound
“The wind whispered through the trees.” What is the human trait used here?
Whispering
What is an idiom?
A phrase whose meaning isn’t literal
“I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.” What is this?
Hyperbole (exaggeration)
Which sentence is a metaphor?
A) The car was as fast as lightning.
B) The car was a rocket on wheels.
B
Identify the onomatopoeia: “The bacon sizzled in the pan.”
Sizzled
Write a personification for the sun.
(Answers vary — e.g., “The sun smiled down on us.”)
Which phrase is a cliché?
A) “Fit as a fiddle.”
B) “He’s a diamond in the rough.”
A – Fit as a fiddle
Choose the sentence with imagery:
A) “The cake smelled sweet and buttery.”
B) “The cake was good.”
A
Create your own simile to describe someone who is very brave.
Answers will vary — e.g., “brave as a lion.”
Make up your own alliterative phrase using the letter “S.”
(Answers will vary — e.g., “Silly snakes slither silently.”)
Why do authors use personification?
To make writing more vivid or emotional
Explain the idiom: “Spill the beans.”
Reveal a secret
Write an example of hyperbole to describe being tired.
(Answers vary — e.g., “I could sleep for a year!”)
Explain the difference between a simile and a metaphor, using an example of each.
Simile uses “like/as”; metaphor does not. Example: Simile: “cold as ice.” Metaphor: “Her heart was ice.”
Choose the line that uses both alliteration and onomatopoeia:
A) “The big bear snored softly.”
B) “The bee buzzed by the blooming bush."
B
Identify all the personification in this sentence: “The stars danced and winked at us as we fell asleep.”
Stars danced; stars winked
Create a sentence using a cliché, then explain what it means.
(Answers vary — e.g., “Time heals all wounds” means emotional pain gets better over time.)
Describe a stormy night using imagery (at least two senses).
(Answers vary — e.g., “Lightning cracked across the sky as the rain soaked my skin.”)