40 Common Rhetorical Devices

40 Common Rhetorical Devices For Tests

Metaphor

A comparison in which something is said to figuratively be something else.

Hyperbole

An intentional exaggeration.

Alliteration

Repeating the same or similar sounds at the beginning of words.

Analogy

A comparison between two similar things, typically using figurative language.

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates the sound it refers to.

Allusion

The act of casually referencing something.

Oxymoron

A figure of speech that uses two opposite words together.

Satire

Uses humor to criticize foolish or evil customs, behaviors, institutions, people, etc.

Paradox

A statement that seems self-contradictory or impossible but actually makes sense.

Simile

A comparison in which something is said to figuratively be like something else.

Irony

Using words to mean the opposite of their literal meaning.

Personification

The act of giving human elements to non-human things.

Anecdote

A brief story about something that happened to the speaker, usually something funny or interesting.

Euphemism

Using alternative language to refer to explicit or unpleasant things.

Connotation

Using words to suggest a social or emotional meaning rather than a literal one.

Meiosis

Using euphemism to minimize the importance or significance of something.

Apostrophe

When a writer or speaker directly addresses an absent person, a concept, or an inanimate object.

Antithesis

Using parallel sentences or clauses to make a contrast.

Sarcasm

Using irony to mock something or to show contempt.

Consonance

A repetition of consonants or consonant sounds within words.

Rhetorical question

A question that isn’t intended to be answered.

Epithet

A nickname or descriptive term used to refer to someone.

Anaphora

The repetition of a word or words at the start of phrases, clauses, or sentences.

Climax

Ordering words so that they build up in intensity.

Cacophony

The act of purposefully using harsh sounds.

Assonance

The repetition of the same vowel sound with different consonants.

Pun

Humorously using words with multiple meanings or words with similar sounds to create wordplay.

Parallelism

Using grammatically similar phrases or sentences together.

Aphorism

A short sentence that presents truth or opinion, usually in a witty or clever manner.

Synecdoche

When a part of something is used to refer to a whole.

Parody

An imitation of something with the intent to poke fun at it.

Colloquialism

An instance of informal language or a local expression.

Understatement

Using language to intentionally lessen a major thing or event.

Syllogism

An argument based on deductive reasoning that uses generalizations to reach specific conclusions.

Eponym

A word based on or derived from a person’s name.

Metonymy

When the name of something is replaced with something related to it.

Parenthesis

An interruption used for clarity.

Metanoia

Any instance of self-correction.

Chiasmus

Reversing the grammatical order in two otherwise parallel phrases or sentences.

Asyndeton

The removal of conjunctions from a sentence.