figurative language

Simile

Compares two unlike things using like, as, than, resembles.

Her smile was like sunshine.

Metaphor

Directly compares two unlike things without like/as.

Time is a thief.

Extended metaphor

A metaphor developed over several lines or throughout a passage.

Life is a journey. We choose our roads, encounter obstacles, and eventually reach our destination.

Personification

Gives human qualities to nonhuman things.

The wind whispered through the trees.

Hyperbole

Extreme exaggeration that isn't meant literally.

I've told you a million times.

Understatement

Makes something seem less important or serious than it really is.

After getting a 2-cm cut: "It's just a scratch."

Oxymoron

Two contradictory words placed together.

deafening silence
bittersweet
living dead

Paradox

A statement that seems contradictory but contains a truth.

The more you learn, the less you know.

Irony

There is a contrast between expectation and reality, or between what is said and what is meant.

Sarcasm

A mocking or cutting form of verbal irony.

Someone drops their phone: "Wow, you're really graceful."

Allusion

An indirect reference to a well-known person, event, place, story, myth, or work.

He met his Waterloo.

Symbolism

An object, person, place, or action represents a larger idea.

Dove → peace
Darkness → uncertainty/death
Light → hope/knowledge

Imagery

Language that appeals to the senses.

Metonymy

Replacing something with a closely associated term.

The crown announced a new law.

Synechdoche

A part represents the whole, or the whole represents a part.

We need more hands on deck.

Apostrophe

Directly addressing someone/something that is absent, dead, or nonhuman.

O Death, where is your sting?

Euphemism

A softer or less offensive expression for something unpleasant.

He passed away.

Litotes

An understatement using negation, often to express the positive.

That's not bad.

Meaning: It's good.

She is not unfamiliar with the subject.

Pun

Wordplay based on multiple meanings or similar sounds.

A bicycle can't stand on its own because it's two-tired.

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates a sound.

buzz
bang
hiss
crack
whoosh

Alliteration

Repetition of initial consonant sounds.

Peter picked purple peppers.

Assonance

Repetition of vowel sounds.

The moon shook the room.

Focus on the repeated sound, not necessarily the letter.

Consonance

Repetition of consonant sounds, particularly within or at the ends of words.

The black rock.

Anaphora

Repetition of a word/phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or lines.

We will fight.
We will endure.
We will prevail.

Epistrophe

Repetition at the end of successive clauses or lines.

We fight for freedom.
We sacrifice for freedom.
We struggle for freedom.

Antithesis

Contrasting ideas presented in a balanced structure.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

Juxtaposition

Placing two contrasting things close together to emphasize their differences.

A beautiful garden growing beside a destroyed city.

Chiasmus

A reversal of grammatical structure.

You should eat to live, not live to eat.

Pattern:

A → B
B → A

Paronomasia

Another term for pun-based wordplay, especially exploiting similar-sounding words.

A boiled egg is hard to beat.

Rhetorical question

A question asked without expecting an actual answer.

Who doesn't want to be happy?

Rhetorical Exclamation

An emotionally charged exclamation used for emphasis.

What a terrible tragedy!

Allegory

A story, poem, or narrative in which characters/events represent larger abstract ideas.

For example, a story about animals competing for control of a farm may represent political power and society.

Foreshadowing

Hints about what will happen later.

A character repeatedly mentions being afraid of drowning before eventually falling into the ocean.

Not strictly "figurative language," but very important in literary analysis.

Flashback

A shift to an earlier event.

A character remembers their childhood during the present-day story.

Also not technically figurative language, but frequently tested alongside literary devices.

Pathetic fallacy

A specific form of personification where nature/environment reflects human emotions.

The gloomy clouds hung over the grieving family.

The gloomy weather mirrors their sadness.

Anthropomorphism

Giving nonhuman beings human characteristics, behavior, or abilities.

The fox put on a coat, walked into town, and ordered dinner.