Poetry and figurative language

Poetry and Figurative Language

by: Sarah Stewart

Metaphor

Simile

Definition:A figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared.

Definition:A figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance.

Personification

Definition: The attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

Example:The example in "Danny Boy" is "The pipes are calling".

Example:The example from "Animals" is "Just like animals" and "Your like a germ thats killing me".

Example:The example in "Roar" is "I have the Eye of the tiger".

Alliteration

Definition:The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

Example:The example in "Let Her Go" is "only know you love her when you let her go".

Example:The example in "Kryptonite" is "Superman".

Allusion

Definition:An expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.

Juxtaposition

Definition:The fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.

Example:The example in "Cruel to be Kind" is "Cruel to be kind".

Definition:The formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named.

Onomatopoeia

Example:The example in "Love Cats" is "Hissed".

Definition:Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

Hyperbole

Example:The example from "Centuries" is "You will remember me for centuries" and "I could scream forever".

Definition:The repetition of the sound of a vowel or diphthong in nonrhyming stressed syllables near enough to each other for the echo to be discernible.

Example:The example from "Every breath you take" is "Every breath you take, every move you make, every bond you break, every step you take".

Ass0nance

Definition: The expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.

Irony

Example:The example from "King of pain" is "There's a blind man looking for a shadow of doubt".