Figure of speech Flashcards
It occurs when a writer gives human traits to non-human or inanimate objects. It is similar to metaphors and similes that also use a comparison between two objects.
Personification
It exaggerates to lay emphasis on a certain quality or feature. It stirs up emotions among the readers, these emotions could be about happiness, romance, inspiration, laughter or sadness.
I’ll love you, dear, I’ll love you
Till China and Africa meet,
And the river jumps over the mountain
And the salmon sing in the street.”
Hyperbole
“You killed my family. And I don’t like that kind of thing.”
understatement
________ and __________ is opposite to each other
hyperbole and understatement
It is a type of comparison between things or objects by using “as” or “like. My heart is like a singing bird Whose nest is in a water’d shoot; My heart is like an apple-tree My heart is like a rainbow shell…
Simile
comparing two unlike objects or things, which may have some common qualities.
Presentiment – is that long shadow – on the lawn –
Indicative that Suns go down –
The notice to the startled Grass
That Darkness – is about to pass –
metaphors
manipulation of words that have more than one meanings. It brings humor in an expression.
Whoever hath her wish, thou hast thy Will,
And Will to boot, and Will in overplus;
pun
. The repetition of an initial consonant sound. Example: She sells seashells by the seashore.
Alliteration:
The repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or verses. Example: Unfortunately, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time on the wrong day.
Anaphora
The juxtaposition of contrasting ideas in balanced phrases. Example: As Abraham Lincoln said, “Folks who have no vices have very few virtues.”
Antithesis
Directly addressing a nonexistent person or an inanimate object as though it were a living being. Example: “Oh, you stupid car, you never work when I need you to,” Bert sighed.
Apostrophe
A verbal pattern in which the second half of an expression is balanced against the first but with the parts reversed. Example: The famous chef said people should live to eat, not eat to live.
Chiasmus
The substitution of an inoffensive term for one considered offensively explicit. Example: “We’re teaching our toddler how to go potty,” Bob said.
Euphemism
The use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning. Also, a statement or situation where the meaning is contradicted by the appearance or presentation of the idea. Example: “Oh, I love spending big bucks,” said my dad, a notorious penny pincher.
irony
A figure of speech consisting of an understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by negating its opposite. Example: A million dollars is no small chunk of change.
Litotes
An implied comparison between two dissimilar things that have something in common. Example: “All the world’s a stage.”
Metaphor
A figure of speech in a word or phrase is substituted for another with which it’s closely associated; also, the rhetorical strategy of describing something indirectly by referring to things around it. Example: “That stuffed suit with the briefcase is a poor excuse for a salesman,” the manager said angrily.
Metonymy
The use of words that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to. Example: The clap of thunder went bang and scared my poor dog.
Onomatopoeia:
A figure of speech in which incongruous or contradictory terms appear side by side. Example: “He popped the jumbo shrimp in his mouth.”
oxymoron
A statement that appears to contradict itself. Example: “This is the beginning of the end,” said Eeyore, always the pessimist.
Paradox
A figure of speech in which an inanimate object or abstraction is endowed with human qualities or abilities. Example: That kitchen knife will take a bite out of your hand if you don’t handle it safely.
Personification
A figure of speech in which a part is used to represent the whole. Example: Tina is learning her ABC’s in preschool.
Synecdoche:
