Similes and Metaphors
A comparison using "like" or "as".
Simile
What is personification?
Giving human qualities to non-human things.
What is alliteration?
The repetition of the same initial consonant sound in nearby words.
What is a stanza?
A group of lines in a poem, similar to a paragraph in prose.
Identify the figurative language: "The stars danced in the sky."
Personification
Identify the simile: The city was as alive as a beehive, buzzing with energy and movement even in the dead of night.
as alive as a beehive
Identify the personification in this sentence: The storm prowled over the town in the distance as it prepared to unleash its fury.
The storm prowled
Identify the alliteration in the stanza:
"The mist moved softly over the meadow,
Where shadows stretched and slowly settled.
A faint breeze whispered through the trees,
As twilight turned the world to silver."
Softly, shadows, slowly, settled
The "S" sound is the alliteration
What is a rhyme scheme?
The pattern of rhymes at the end of each line in a poem.
Identify the figurative language: "He was a lion in battle."
Metaphor
A direct comparison that does not use "like" or "as"
metaphor
What is hyperbole?
An extreme exaggeration used for effect.
What is onomatopoeia?
A word that imitates a sound.
Define free verse.
Poetry that does not follow a regular rhyme or rhythm pattern.
Identify the figurative langauge: "Her thoughts were like fractured glass, sharp and scattered, reflecting a thousand broken pieces of memory."
Simile
Identify the metaphor: Her mind was a labyrinth, twisting and turning with thoughts that few could follow.
Her mind was a labyrinth
Identify the hyperbole: She'd read the book so many times, the words were practically etched onto her soul.
The words were practically etched onto her soul.
What is assonance?
The repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words.
Why would a poet use repetition in a poem?
Emphasis and Focus
Identify the figurative language: "The leaves crackled underfoot as the wind whispered through the trees, a soft murmur of the coming storm."
onomatopoeia
Explain the difference between a simile and a metaphor.
A simile uses "like" or "as" to compare, while a metaphor makes a direct comparison without using those words.
Explain why an author might use hyperbole in a poem.
To emphasize an emotion or idea by exaggerating it.
What is the rhyme scheme in the following stanza:
"The moonlight danced on the quiet sea,
While shadows whispered softly to me.
The waves were calm, the night was still,
As stars above the heavens did spill. "
A, A, B, B
Identify the repetition:
"The night is dark, the night is long,
And still, the stars refuse to shine.
The night is dark, the night is cold,
But in my heart, there’s light divine."
"The night is dark, the night is
Identify the TWO examples of figurative language: "She waited forever for the rain to stop, watching every drop fall like a tiny eternity."
Hyperbole
Simile