LITERARY DEVICES AND THEIR DEFINITIONS

A stated comparison (usually formed with "like" or "as") between two fundamentally dissimilar things that have certain qualities in common. eg: as busy as a bee, as happy as a clam,etc. SIMILIE

An implied comparison between two unlike things. Egs: all the world’s a stage, he drowned in a sea of grief, etc. METAPHOR

The repetition of an initial consonant sound. Egs: “Peter Piper Picked a Peck of Pickled Peppers” ALLITERATION

A figure of speech in which an inanimate object or abstraction is endowed with human qualities or abilities. Egs: The wind whispered through dry grass. PERSONIFICATION

It takes place when two or more words close to one another repeat the same vowel sound but start with different consonant sounds. Egs:“Men sell the wedding bells”. ASSONANCE

A figure of speech in which a part is used to represent the whole. Egs: The word “bread” refers to food or money as in “Writing is my bread and butter” or “sole breadwinner”. SYNECDOCHE

Egs: It was dark and dim in the forest. – The words “dark” and “dim” are visual images. The children were screaming and shouting in the fields. - “Screaming” and “shouting” appeal to our sense of hearing or auditory sense. IMAGERY The use of figurative language to represent objects, actions and ideas in such a way that it appeals to our physical senses.

An extravagant statement; the use of exaggerated terms for the purpose of emphasis or heightened effect. Egs: My grandmother is as old as the hills. I am dying of shame. HYPERBOLE

The use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning. A statement or situation where the meaning is contradicted by the appearance or presentation of the idea. Egs: In his poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, Coleridge wrote: “Water, water, everywhere, And all the boards did shrink; Water, water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.” IRONY

A figure of speech in which incongruous or contradictory terms appear side by side. Egs: cruel kindness, living death, etc. OXYMORON