Examples of Figurative Language

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Figurative language refers to the color we use to amplify our writing. It takes an ordinary
statement and dresses it up in an evocative frock. It gently alludes to something without directly
stating it. Figurative language is a way to engage your readers, ushering them through your
writing with a more creative tone.

Although it's often debated how many "types" of figurative language there are, it's safe to say
there are at least five distinct categories. They are: metaphors, similes, personification,
hyperbole, and symbolism.

In this article, we'll highlight the main branches of the tree, or "the big five." In truth, this is only
scratching the surface. There are waves of other literary devices that color our writing, including
alliteration, onomatopoeia, idioms, irony, oxymorons, puns, synecdoche, and more. As a starting
point, let's have some fun with the ones you're most likely to come across in your daily readings.

Understanding the Concept

Any time your writing goes beyond the actual meanings of your words, you're using figurative
language. This allows the reader to gain new insights into your work.

One of the best ways to understand the concept of figurative language is to see it in action. Here
are some examples:

 This coffee shop is an ice box! (Metaphor)

 She's drowning in a sea of grief. (Metaphor)
 She's happy as a clam. (Simile)
 I move fast like a cheetah on the Serengeti. (Simile)
 The sea lashed out in anger at the ships, unwilling to tolerate another battle.
(Personification)
 The sky misses the sun at night. (Personification)
 I’ve told you a million times to clean your room! (Hyperbole)
 Her head was spinning from all the new information. (Hyperbole)
 She was living her life in chains. (Symbolism - Chains are a symbol of oppression of
entrapment.)
 When she saw the dove soar high above her home, she knew the worst was over.
(Symbolism - Doves are a symbol of peace and hope.)

The Big Five

Let’s dive deeper into "the big five." We’ll consider their place in your writing, and give some
examples to paint a better picture for you.
Metaphor

When you use a metaphor, you make a statement that doesn’t literally make sense. For example,
“Time is a thief.” Time is not actually stealing from you but this conveys the idea that hours or
days sometimes seem to slip by without you noticing.

Metaphors only makes sense when the similarities between the two things being compared are
apparent or readers understand the connection between the two words. Examples include:

 The world is my oyster.

 You're a couch potato.
 Time is money.
 He has a heart of stone.
 America is a melting pot.
 You are my sunshine.

Simile

A simile also compares two things. However, similes use the words “like” or “as.”

Examples include:

 Busy as a bee.
 Clean as a whistle.
 Brave as a lion.
 The tall girl stood out like a sore thumb.
 It was as easy as shooting fish in a barrel.
 My mouth was as dry as a bone.
 They fought like cats and dogs.
 Watching that movie was like watching grass grow.

Personification

Personification gives human characteristics to inanimate objects, animals, or ideas. This can
really affect the way the reader imagines things. Personification is often used in poetry, fiction,
and children’s rhymes.

Examples include:

 Opportunity knocked at his door.

 The sun greeted me this morning.
 The sky was full of dancing stars.
 The vines wove their delicate fingers together.
 The radio suddenly stopped singing and stared at me.
 The sun played hide and seek with the clouds.
Hyperbole

Hyperbole is an outrageous exaggeration that emphasizes a point. It tends toward the ridiculous
or the funny. Hyperbole adds color and depth to a character.

Examples include:

 You snore louder than a freight train!

 It's a slow burg. I spent a couple of weeks there one day.
 She's so dumb, she thinks Taco Bell is a Mexican phone company.
 I had to walk 15 miles to school in the snow, uphill, in bare feet.
 You could've knocked me over with a feather.

Symbolism

Symbolism occurs when a word has its own meaning but is used to represent something entirely
different.

Examples in everyday life include:

 Using the image of the American flag to represent patriotism and a love for one’s
country.
 Incorporating a red rose in your writing to symbolize love.
 Using an apple pie to represent a traditional American lifestyle.
 Using a chalkboard to represent education.
 Incorporating the color black in your writing as a symbol for evil or death.
 Using an owl to represent wisdom.

Symbolism examples in literature include:

“All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and
their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts.” - As You Like It, William
Shakespeare

The “stage” here symbolizes the world and the “players” represent human beings.

“My love for Linton is like the foliage in the woods. Time will change it; I’m well aware, as
winter changes the trees. My love for Heathcliff resembles the eternal rocks beneath a source of
little visible delight, but necessary.” - Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte

Bronte uses imagery of the natural world to symbolize the wild nature and deep feelings of her
characters.

Some Fun Sounds

So, that covers "the big five." But, we'd be remiss if we didn't briefly touch upon some literary
sound devices that can hang with the best similes and metaphors.

Alliteration

Alliteration is a sound device. It is the repetition of the first consonant sounds in several words.

Examples include:

 We're up, wide-eyed, and wondering while we wait for others to awaken.
 Betty bought butter but the butter was bitter, so Betty bought better butter to make the
bitter butter better.

Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia is also a sound device where the words sound like their meaning, or mimic
sounds. They add a level of fun and reality to writing.

Here are some examples:

 The burning wood hissed and crackled.

 Sounds of nature are all around us. Listen for the croak, caw, buzz, whirr, swish, hum,
quack, meow, oink, and tweet.

Figurative Language Engages the Reader

Regardless of the type of word you use, figurative language can make you look at the world
differently; it can heighten your senses, add expression and emphasis, and help you feel like
you're having the same experience as the author. With each brush stroke across the canvas a
painter adds depth to their masterpiece. Figurative language adds the same kind of depth to our
writing.

So, instead of hearing the wind blow against your window tonight, perhaps you'll hear the
whisper of the wind as it calls out for you like a lover in the night (personification and simile,
respectively). That blank page you're looking at is actually a blank canvas. It's up to you to add
texture and depth. Have fun layering your literary devices, but remember not to go overboard
with them!

What is litotes?

Litotes is a figure of speech consisting of an understatement in which an affirmative is expressed

by negating its opposite. For example, instead of saying that someone is mean, you can say he is
not very generous.
Examples of litotes

He's not a very generous man.

She is not very beautiful.

He is not the friendliest person I 've met.

Don't be too wicked.

It won't be an easy trip

He is not unaware of his wife's foolishness.