FIGURATIVE LANGUAGEPRACTICE

R E A D T H E F O L L O W I N G Q U O T E S A N D I D E N T I F Y W H AT T Y P E O F F I G U R AT I V E

L A N G UA G E I S B E I N G U S E D

1. “Behind the trees clouds scudded

frantically across the sky. Every few

moments the moon ripped through

them creating wraithlike shadows that

raced along the ground”

PERSONIFICATION

wraithlike shadows that raced along

the ground

2. “outrageous plainness”

OXYMORON

Outrageous plainness

3. “Like sometimes if I concentrate

very hard I can understand the wind

talking with the trees”

PERSONIFICATION

the wind talking with the trees

4. “and the door swung slowly outward,

creaking on rusty hinges. Up in one of the

elms an old black crow gave its raucous cry,

and a woodpecker went into a wild rat-a-tat-

tat. Large gray rat scuttled around the corner

of the house and Meg let out a stifled shriek.”

ONOMATAPOEIA

rat-a-tat-tat

5. “Silence fell between them as tangible

as the dark tree shadows that fell across

their laps and now seemed to rest upon

them as heavily as though they possessed

a measurable weight of their own.”

SIMILE

as tangible as the dark tree shadows

that fell across their laps

6. “clear as mud”

OXYMORON AND SIMILE

“clear as mud”

7. “it was as though the dark shadow

had somehow reached out with its dark

power and touched them so that they

were incapable of speech.”

PERSONIFICATION

the dark shadow had somehow

reached out with its dark power and

touched them

8. “It reminded Meg of the Cheshire

Cat.”

ALLUSION

Cheshire Cat (Alice in

Wonderland)

9. “kind of darkness … that wanted to

eat her…”

PERSONIFICATION

Darkness wanted to eat her

10. “Was it his words that were ice ,

or her ears?”

METAPHOR

Words were ice

11. “The furnace purred like a great,

sleepy animal; the lights glowed with

steady radiance …”

SIMILE

Purred like a great sleepy animal

12. “The curtains, red, with a blue

and green geometrical pattern, were

drawn and seemed to reflect their

cheerfulness throughout the room.”

PERSONIFICATION

curtains, red, with a blue and green

geometrical pattern, were drawn and

seemed to reflect their cheerfulness

throughout the room

13. “ One white faced man in a dark suit

looked directly at the children, said, “Oh

dear, I shall be late,” and flickered into the

building.

“He’s like the white rabbit,” Meg giggled

nervously.

ALLUSION AND SIMILE

He’s like the white rabbit,” Meg

giggled nervously

(Alice in Wonderland)

2 POSSIBLE ANSWERS

14. “She sighed and stretched … her

body was bathed in waves of warmth.”

ALLITERATION AND METAPHOR

She sighed and stretched

waves of warmth