Comparisons
A type of figurative language that compares two unlike things using "like" or "as."
Simile
A play on words
Pun
a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true
paradox
Repetition of initial letter sounds
alliteration
Giving human qualities to nonhuman things
personification
A type of figurative language that compares two unlike things without using "like" or "as."
Metaphor
a combination of contradictory or incongruous words
oxymoron
an implied or indirect reference to a famous person, place, or event - the author provides no explanation or context
allusion
Repetition of vowel sounds
assonance
Extreme exaggeration
hyperbole
a comparison of two otherwise unlike things based on resemblance of a particular aspect
analogy
a type of phrase or expression that has a meaning that can't be deciphered by defining the individual words
idiom
a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa
synecdoche
words that simulate sounds
onomatopoeia
when what happens is the opposite of what you expect
situational irony
the substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive expression for one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant
euphemism
"You are driving me up the wall!" is this type of figurative language
idiom
"Youth is wasted on the young" is an example of this type of figurative language
paradox
repetition of a word or expression at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, sentences, or verses especially for rhetorical or poetic effect
anaphora
when the reader or audience knows something the characters do not
dramatic irony
"You are my sunshine" is an example of this type of figurative language.
Metaphor
"That movie was awfully good" is an example of this type of figurative language.
oxymoron
"The aroma of the freshly baked cookies lured me to the kitchen, an irresistible Siren's song" is an example of this type of figurative language
allusion (mythological)
"Beside the lake, beneath the trees, / Fluttering and dancing in the breeze" is an example of this type of repetition.
assonance
when a speaker says one thing but means something entirely different (like sarcasm)
verbal irony