Figures of

Speech

Prepared by

Mr. Joey F. Valdriz

What is the difference between…

Literal and

Figurative language?

» The actual, dictionary meaning of a word;

language that means what it appears to mean

» Avoiding exaggeration, metaphor, or

embellishment

» Conforming to the most obvious meaning of a

word, phrase, sentence, or story

It means exactly what it says! Word for word.

Example One: The Philippines is a small country.

What does it mean? Exactly what it says!

Example Two: The weather is beautiful today.

What does it mean? Exactly what it says!

» Language that goes beyond the normal

meaning of the words used

» Based on or making use of figures of speech;

metaphorical

» Represented by a figure or symbol

Figure it out! There’s a deeper meaning hidden in the words.

Example:

“Fragrance always stays in the hand that gives the rose.”

- Hada Bejar

Does it mean you have a smelly hand? NO!

What does it mean? Giving to others is gracious and the good feeling of giving stays with you.

Read between the lines because

not everything is as it appears.

There are various ways of using words figuratively. Among them the most common are:

1. Simile: It is a comparison between two distinctly different things and the comparison is indicated by the word as or like:

» O my love’s like a red, red rose.

» The old man’s hair is as white as snow.

2. Metaphor: the use of a word which originally denotes one thing to refer to another with a similar quality. The comparison is implied, not expressed with the word as or like.

» He is the soul of the team.

» My son’s friend is a bad apple.

3. Personification: it is to treat a thing or an idea as if it were human or had human qualities.

» The door protested as it opened slowly.

» The fire ran wild.

4. Metonymy: it is substituting the name of one thing for that of another with which it is closely associated.

» The crown is kind and humble.

» Lend me your ears.

» Adobo is my favorite dish.

5. Synecdoche: It is applied when a part is substituted for the whole or the whole is substituted for a part.

» Man cannot live by bread alone.

» Many wheels have passed already.

» The hired hands are hardworking.

6. Apostrophe: It is a direct address either to an absent person or to a nonhuman entity.

» O Solitude! Where are the charms that sages have seen in thy face?

» "Blue Moon, you saw me standing alone

Without a dream in my heart

Without a love of my own."

7. Hyperbole: Exaggeration is used for emphasis or effect.

» Here is the smell of blood still; all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.

» Give me a thousand kisses, then a hundred, Then another thousand, then a second hundred, Then still another thousand, then a hundred

8. Euphemism: It is the substitution of a mild or vague expression for a harsh or unpleasant one.

» The former president passed away. (died)

» I appreciate the hard work of sanitation workers. (garbage collectors)

9. Irony: It is the use of words which are clearly opposite to what is meant, in order to achieve a special effect.

» It’s a nice, pleasant sort of weather indeed.

» Imelda Marcos was once a frugal first lady.

10. Antithesis: It is a rhetorical term for the juxtaposition of contrasting ideas in balanced phrases or clauses.

» Many are called, but few are chosen.

» Don't use big words. They mean so little.

11. Onomatopoeia: It is the use of words that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to.

» "Chug, chug, chug. Puff, puff, puff. Ding-dong, ding-dong. The little train rumbled over the tracks.“

» "Brrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinng! An alarm clock clanged in the dark and silent room."

12. Litotes: It is an understatement. The words play down the magnitude or value of the subject.

She was not without ambition. (She was quite ambitious)

I was not a little upset. (when you mean 'I was very upset’)

13. Paradox: A statement which seems to contradict itself but which contains a deeper truth. Paradoxes are similar to oxymorons, but where an oxymoron puts opposite words together, a paradox puts opposite ideas together.

» The child is father of the man.

» Cowards die many times before their death.

14. Oxymoron: Apparently contradictory terms are combined to produce a special effect.

» She had bitter-sweet memories with her boyfriend.

» The boy performed the experiment with careful carelessness.

15. Alliteration: refers to the appearance of the same initial consonant sound in two or more words, such as:

» Pat Peter is proud as a peacock.

» If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, how many pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?

16. Assonance: It is the repetition of identical or similar vowel sounds in neighboring words.

» "If I bleat when I speak it's because I just got . . . fleeced.“

» The man was so happy to have his bagpack.

17. Allusion: A figure of speech that makes a reference to a place, person, or something that happened. This can be real or imaginary and may refer to anything, including paintings, opera, folk lore, mythical figures, or religious manuscripts. The reference can be direct or may be inferred, and can broaden the reader’s understanding.

» He was a real Romeo with the ladies.

» This place is like a Garden of Eden.”

Name the figure of speech used in each of the

following sentences:

1. Life is a dream.

2. When I enter the room, there is a defeaning

silence.

3. Life is as tedious as a twice-told tale.

4. The leaves are trembling in the cold wind.

5. The storm was so angry that it wanted to

destroy everything in its way.

6. I like the song “The Silent Sound”.

7. Selfless people are like cows, which eat straw

but produce milk.

8. Variety is the spice of life.

9. His friends praised his daughter’s performances

to the skies.

10. His writing is clear and clean.

11. His unfriendly tongue surprised her.

12. "I'm getting married in the morning! Ding

dong! the bells are gonna chime.“

13. O death! Where is thy sting? O grave! Where

is thy victory?

14. He’s always chasing skirts.

15. I’m so hungry I could eat a horse!

16. Fair is foul, and foul is fair.

17. It isn’t very serious. I have this tiny little

tumor on the brain.

18. Her brain is the size of a pea.

19. The dagger of the United States sliced

Saddam Hussein’s army to pieces.

20. "O western wind, when wilt thou blow

That the small rain down can rain?"

21. Adam lay with his wife Eve, and she became

pregnant and gave birth to Cain… (Gen. 4:1)

22. Ten thousand suns light up this room.

23. This is no small problem. (Instead of saying that

it’s a big problem)

24. An earthquake occurring during an earthquake

drill.

25. All hands on deck.

26. The tree bowed and waved to me in the wind.

27. A good laugh is sunshine in a house.

28. Friends are like parachutes. If they aren’t

there the first time you need them, chances are,

you won’t be needing them again.

29. The ocean danced in the moonlight.

30. My best friend was a backstabber.

31. If your right eyes causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. (Matt. 5:29)

32. Why was it, O sea, that you fled, O Jordan, that you turned back, you mountains, that you skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. (Psalm 114:5-6)

33. Life is a box of chocolates.

34. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth… (Psalm 98:8-9)

35. And I tell you that on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. (Matt. 16:18)

36. She wants to see the sea.

37. It’s possible for a camel to enter the eye of a needle.

38. Pride goes forth on horseback, grand and gay.

39. Dogs have surrounded me, a band of evil men has

encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet.

(Psalm 22:16)

40. He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not

lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. (Psalm

24:4)