Figurative Language Vocabulary

Fundamental Concept of Figurative Language

• Definition of Figurative Language: Figurative language occurs when words mean something other than their literal meaning. It goes beyond the concrete definition of words to convey complex ideas, vivid imagery, emphasis, or creative comparisons.

Categories and Types of Figurative Language

• Simile:

  • Definition: A comparison of two unlike things using the connecting words "LIKE" or "AS".
  • Key Identifiers: Look for explicit comparative words such as "like" or "as".
  • Example: "My brothers are as loud as cymbals clanging together."

• Metaphor:

  • Definition: A comparison of two unlike things that directly states or implies that one thing is another, without using comparative words like "like" or "as".
  • Example: "The new baby was a bundle of joy."

• Hyperbole:

  • Definition: An intentional exaggeration that cannot possibly be true, used for effect or emphasis.
  • Example: "It felt as if I had walked a million miles to school."

• Personification:

  • Definition: Giving human qualities, attributes, or actions to nonhuman things, objects, or elements of nature.
  • Example: "The morning sun smiled down on me as I walked to the bus."

• Alliteration:

  • Definition: The repetition of the same initial consonant sound in a sequence of nearby words.
  • Example: "He helped her hurt head heal."

• Onomatopoeia:

  • Definition: Words whose spoken sounds suggest or imitate their actual meaning.
  • Example: "A snowball WHOOSHED past my ear during the snowball fight."

• Idiom:

  • Definition: A group of words or phrase whose figurative meaning cannot be understood from the literal definitions of its individual words.
  • Example: "After we won the soccer game, my team was on cloud 9."

• Allusion:

  • Definition: A direct or indirect reference to a well-known famous person, place, or event.
  • Example: "The gold medal winner was a Cinderella Story."

• Oxymoron:

  • Definition: A phrase featuring words that directly contradict each other with opposite meanings placed side-by-side or in close proximity.
  • Example: "The old green couch was really pretty ugly."