The Fabulous First Five
A figure of speech that implicitly compares two unrelated things, typically by stating that one thing is another. For example: That party was the bomb
What is a Metaphor?
A word that sounds like the noise it describes. Buzz-The bee buzzed in my ear. Boom-The boom of the fireworks scared the baby.
What is Onomatopoeia?
A rhetorical device used to compare two things (typically using the words “like,” “as,” or “than”). One common expression would be “as quiet as a mouse.”
What is a Simile?
Anything that hints at something else, usually something abstract, such as an idea or belief. This device is an object, a person, a situation, or an action that has a literal meaning in a story but suggests or represents other meanings. For example a heart is this for love.
What is Symbol?
An extravagant, exaggerated statement or figure of speech not intended to be taken literally such as It's Raining Cats and Dogs!
What is an Hyperbole?
Most commonly found in poetry and speeches to create rhythm or emphasize a word or phrase, this is the literary device in which a word or phrase is used multiple times.
What is Repetition?
These are all examples of this device used to form words beginning with similar consonant or vowel sounds that are used consecutively, one after the other.
What is Alliteration?
An expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly such as "Chocolate cake is my Achilles heel."
What is Allusion?
This device is one of the strongest literary techniques because it connects to the personal experiences, or memories, made up of words that trigger the reader to recall mental pictures, that engage one of the five senses: sight, sound, taste, smell, and touch. For example The sky was as blue as the ocean and the clouds sailed across it like white boats.
What is Imagery?
The attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman for example the alarm clock yelled, the sun kissed my face, and the wind howled.
What is Personification?