Vocabulary
Literary Devices
metaphor · simile · personification · hyperbole · foreshadowing
saying something IS something else
/ˈmetəfə/"Time is a thief" is a metaphor.
comparing two things using like or as
/ˈsɪməli/"As brave as a lion" is a simile.
giving human qualities to things or ideas
/pəˌsɒnɪfɪˈkeɪʃn/"The wind whispered through the trees" uses personification.
repeating the same first sound in nearby words
/əˌlɪtəˈreɪʃn/"Peter Piper picked a peck" is an example of alliteration.
deliberate exaggeration
/haɪˈpɜːbəli/"I've told you a million times" is hyperbole.
a word that sounds like what it describes
/ˌɒnəˌmætəˈpiːə/"Buzz" and "sizzle" are examples of onomatopoeia.
hinting early on at what will happen later
/fɔːˈʃædəʊɪŋ/The broken mirror in chapter one is foreshadowing — bad luck follows.
when the opposite of what is expected happens or is meant
/ˈaɪrəni/A fire station burning down is a classic example of irony.
two opposite words used together
/ˌɒksɪˈmɔːrɒn/"Deafening silence" is an oxymoron.
a scene set earlier than the main story
/ˈflæʃbæk/The film opens in the present, then a flashback shows her childhood.
1
Give a simile and a metaphor about your morning.
2
Find hyperbole in something you said this week.
3
Which book or film uses foreshadowing well?
4
Invent an oxymoron and use it in a sentence.
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