FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE, STYLISTIC DEVICES

AND ERRORS and VISUAL LITERACY

Comparisons and Associations

Metaphor When one thing is said to be

another.

The sunset is a blaze of blood.

Transferred Epithet When emotion is transferred from a

human onto something else.

He opened the cheery door and

greeted our group.

Simile A comparison using ‘like’ or ‘as’.

The Grade 8s moved like lethargic

elephants.

Metonymy When an object is represented by

something closely related to it.

The Whitehouse holds all the power.

(the president is powerful)

Personification Non-human things are given human

qualities.

The curious moon peeped around

the cloud bank.

Synecdoche When a part of something is used to

represent the whole.

Nice set of wheels!

(you have a nice car)

Mixed Metaphors When metaphors from different objects are brought together.

Wake up and smell the coffee on the wall.

Over or Understatements

Hyperbole A deliberate exaggeration to

heighten impact.

Her bag weighs a ton!

Meiosis Using understatement to subtly

make an impact.

It is a tad windy this afternoon.

Litotes A form of understatement making use of the

opposite.

He’s not exactly Usain Bolt.

Sound Effects and Noises

Alliteration The repetition of the consonant

sound usually (but not always) at the

beginning of the word.

The sun blazed and burned her

sensitive skin.

Onomatopoeia When the sound of a word mimics

the sound it is describing.

The old car sputtered and clattered

down the drive.

Assonance The repetition of vowel sounds.

The drowsy student frowned down at

his page.

Pun A play on similar sounding words

that have different meanings.

Dentistry is boring but also fulfilling.

Opposites Attract

Oxymoron Two words, opposite in meaning,

placed next to each other.

Paradox A statement which seems to be

contradictory but contains truth.

Cowards die many times before their

deaths.

Antithesis Opposites placed further apart so the sentence is balanced.

“Our government should work for us, not against us. It should help us, not

hurt us.” Barak Obama

Irony

Verbal When you say

something but mean

the opposite.

I cannot wait to write

my final Science exam.

Situational When the opposite of

what you would expect

happens.

Dramatic When the audience

knows more than the

characters do.

A Few More

Synaesthesia The blending of senses. I.e. when a

sense, such as sight, triggers another

sense, like smell, at the same time

The cold smell of potato mould.

Euphemism Expressing something harsh or

distasteful in a polite manner.

Your fish passed away.

Zeugma When a word applies to two others in

different senses.

I lost my keys and my mind.

Cliché An overused expression that has lost

its effect.

Every cloud has a silver lining.

Bathos An anti-climax.

He spent his final hour of life doing

what he loved most: arguing with his

wife.

Apostrophe Directly addressing an object or an

idea as if it were a person. Or

addressing someone who is absent.

You stupid printer! Why are you

doing this to me?

Innuendo A subtle (often nasty) hint at

something.

So when are you joining the gym?

Sarcasm A deliberately taunting, hurtful

comment.

Well, you’re not exactly a rocket

scientist, are you?

Stylistic Errors

Ambiguity A statement that is vague and has two possible interpretations.

Malapropism The use of the wrong ‘big word’.

Spoonerism When you swap around the initial

letters of words.

Putting it into practice

Exercise 1 – MIXED EXAMPLES

Identify the figure of speech in the following examples.

1. The pavement groaned as the fat lady trudged her way home.

2. The three judges tottered up the court steps as if fresh from their third heart

bypasses.

3. Dear God: don’t leave me hanging by my flesh on the hands of time.

4. Parting is such sweet sorrow.

5. The Drain Surgeon – for all your plumbing requirements.

6. A friend exaggerates your virtues, an enemy your crimes.

7. You do not waste time; Time wastes you.

8. The bay was white with silent light.

The ice did split with a thunder-fit.

Over the cobbles he clattered and clashed.

9. “If you don’t do your homework, I will sentence you to 100 lashes with a wet

noodle!”

10. She killed her husband, her Maltese poodle and the lights on her way out.

11. Go ahead, Fate, make my day!

12. That woman has a waddle rather like a duck.

13. She wore an itsy bitsy, teeny weeny, yellow polka dot bikini.

14. He lay on the floor curled up like a grilled prawn.

15. I came, I saw, I concurred.

16. The moon was a ghostly galleon.

Exercise 2 – AMBIGUITY

For each of the following sentences:

a) Explain why the sentence is ambiguous. Begin with “It sounds as

if…” and state the two possible interpretations.

b) Rewrite the sentence so that it is no longer ambiguous.

1. To Rent: Neat, well-kept town house with two bedrooms and spacious

bathroom at present occupied by owner.

2. I liked the movie more than my girlfriend.

3. The bride was given away by her father in a white satin dress.

4. We live in a quiet neighbourhood, with dogs and children riding bicycles.

5. 6.

Exercise 3 – EUPHEMISMS

Match the term in the left column with the ‘harsher’ description in the

right column.

For the fuller figure Old people

Expectorate False teeth

Senior citizens For overweight people

Defensive measures Go to the toilet

Vertically challenged Fired

Alternative dentation Poor

Being let go Spit

Powder my nose Short

Economically marginalised Unemployed

Between projects Bombing raids

Exercise 4 – INNUENDO and SARCASM

Explain the innuendo in the following:

1. I’m glad Henry plays the saxophone. He can’t sing while he’s playing.

2. What a lovely watch! It looks just like the one I lost yesterday.

3. You’ll be safe in a zombie apocalypse. They only eat brains.

4. Wife: “Does this dress make me look fat?” Man: “I really love the colour.”

5. If you lost your head, it would only make an aesthetic difference.

Match the following parts of the sarcastic insults:

She said she felt like a young colt to pieces.

He’s so narrow-minded when a butterfly kicked him in the

head.

They pick their friends but she looked like an old forty-five.

He’s so dumb that he lost his mind he won’t even listen to both sides of

a DVD.

For fun:

Exercise 5 – IRONY

Explain the irony in the following cartoons. State whether it is

situational, verbal or dramatic.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Exercise 6 – PUNS

Explain the following puns:

1. Kevin’s attempt to donate blood was in vain.

2. Patient: I believe I’m turning into a pack of cards. Psychiatrist: We’ll deal

with that later.

3. Do you mind if I join you? Why are you coming apart?

4. 5.

6. 7.

8.

Exercise 7 – MALAPROPISMS and SPOONERISMS

Correct the following sentences.

If it is a malapropism, identify the word and supply the correct word.

If it is a spoonerism, correct the error.

1. Surgeons discovered that the growth was malingering and had to deform

to operation quickly.

2. The old man sipped thoughtfully at the gold class of beer.

3. There was fain on his pace as he turned to leave.

4. The mayor welcomed all the important guests and extinguished visitors.

5. After the prisoner’s attempted escape, the judge provoked all his privileges.

6. From the rubbish dip tense clouds of smoke drifted across the town.

7. You have hissed all my mystery lessons and tasted a whole worm.

8. The writing was faded and almost completely ineligible.

9. He drank dark red wine from a shiny silver chalet.

10. The king’s aging wife was a queer old dean.

Exercise 8 – SATIRE

Examine the cartoons and answer the questions that follow.

1.1 Explain the connotations of the word “parasite”.

1.2 What is the cartoon suggesting about bankers?

2.1 Explain the irony in the woman’s words in frame 1.

2.2 What criticism is this cartoon making?

3.1 The depiction of the people in this cartoon is an example of caricature.

What does this mean?

3.2 What is this cartoon suggesting about the government and Eskom

employees?

Exercise 9 – OXYMORON and PARADOX

State whether the following sentences contain an oxymoron or a paradox.

1. Harvey Weinstein’s indiscretions were an open secret.

2. A rich man is no richer than a poor man.

3. I must be cruel to be kind.

4. Please bring me your original copies.

5. That’s almost exactly the right amount of chocolate to add.

6. Deep down he’s really very shallow.

7. What a pity that youth should be wasted on the young.

8. I’ve bought a new virtual reality game.