Understanding Figurative Language SMAPHOS Understanding Figurative Language

Simile and Synecdoche A simile is a comparison between two unlike things using “like” or “as.” The spider was suspended from its thread like an acrobat on a tightrope. Synecdoche is using part of an object to represent the whole, and vice versa. The captain wants all hands on deck.

Metaphor, Metonymy, and Motif A metaphor compares two unlike things without using “like” or “as.” The toothpicks were toy soldiers, ready to spear the appetizers. Metonymy is substituting the name of one object for another closely associated with it. “The pen [writing] is mightier than the sword [war/fighting].” Motif is a standard theme, element, or dramatic situation that recurs in various works. The recurring use of onions and sunflowers are motifs in Shrek.

Alliteration, Allusion, Apostrophe Alliteration is the repetition of two or more consonant sounds at the beginnings of words or syllables . Silently sighing, he strongly swept her off her feet. Allusion is a reference to something literary, mythological, historical, or Biblical. “Just then we heard a war whoop, such as David might have emitted when he knocked out the champion Goliath.” Apostrophe is when one directly addresses an absent or imaginary person, or some abstraction. Twinkle, twinkle little star, / How I wonder what you are.

Assonance, Asyndeton, (&Consonance) Assonance is the repetition of vowels sounds within words “The only other sound’s the sweep / Of easy wind and downy flake.” Asyndeton is a sentence in which related clauses are presented in a series without conjunctions. Abraham Lincoln consecrated Gettysburg so “that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Consonance consists of identical consonant sounds preceded by different vowel sounds. I was in a muddle in the middle of the onrushing crowd.

Parallelism, Personification, Polysyndeton, and Pun Parallelism is the grammatical or structural similarity between sentences or parts. We went running through the forest, swinging over the ravine, and swimming in the creek. Personification gives human characteristics and traits to inanimate objects. The wind whispered through my window, revealing night’s secrets. Polysyndeton is the use of more conjunctions than is necessary or natural. Lions and tigers and bears, oh my! A pun is a play on words when the words have similar sounds but different meanings. Bill and Sam signed their letter, “Two Desperate Men.”

Hyperbole, (Understatement, &Litotes) Hyperbole is a gross exaggeration, something that could never happen. If she lied to him one more time, he knew his heart would explode. Understatement is representing something as lesser in magnitude than it actually is. That Red Chief was only a little troublesome. Litotes is a type of understatement in which an idea is expressed by negating its opposite. Looking at the vomit on the floor, the girl said, “That is not a pretty picture.”

Onomatopoeia and Oxymoron Onomatopoeia is a word that imitates sounds. The soda can cracked open with a refreshing fizz. Oxymoron is an expression in which two words that contradict each other are joined. Taped live, plastic glasses, Dodge Ram, living dead, and jumbo shrimp are all oxymorons.