- metaphor
is a comparison in which something is said to figuratively be
something else.
He was a wolf among sheep.
- hyperbole
is an intentional exaggeration.
The plate exploded into a million pieces.
- alliteration
is repeating the same or similar sounds at the beginning of
words.
She sells seashells by the sea shore.
- analogy
is a comparison between two similar things, typically using
figurative language. Metaphors and similes—more on them later—are
usually considered to be types of analogies. Sometimes, analogies are
considered to be a unique device that is a comparison that explains
itself; basically, a complex metaphor or long simile.
Life is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you are going
to get.
- onomatopoeia
is a word that imitates the sound it refers to.
The thunder boomed and the lightning crashed.
- allusion
is the act of casually referencing something, usually a work of
popular culture.
Finishing his memoir was his white whale.
- oxymoron
is a figure of speech that uses two opposite words together.
The treaty led to a violent peace.
- satire
is using humor to criticize public figures.
When Senator Jackson said "numbers don't lie," he forgot that his
first name wasn't "Numbers."
- paradox
refers to making a statement that seems
self-contradictory or impossible but actually makes sense.
Youth is wasted on the young.
- simile
is a comparison in which something is said to figuratively be like
something else.
It was as hot as a desert this morning.
- irony
irony means to use words to mean
the opposite of their literal meaning.
Ashley said it was a beautiful day while drying off from the drenching
rain. (Ashley ironically referred to poor weather as "beautiful.")
- personification
is the act of giving human elements to non-human things.
The beautiful valley spread its arms out and embraced us.
- anecdote
is a brief story about something that happened to the speaker,
usually something funny or interesting.
Five years ago, I went to the store and met some clowns. Those
clowns gave me the advice I am sharing with you now.
- euphemism
is using alternative language to refer to explicit or unpleasant
things.
The baseball struck him in a sensitive area.
- connotation
is using words to suggest a social or emotional meaning rather
than a literal one.
This is a house, but I want a home.
- meiosis
means using euphemism to minimize the
importance or significance of something.
We must put an end to this peculiar institution.
("Peculiar institution" is a euphemism for slavery.)
- apostrophe
occurs when a writer or speaker directly addresses an
absent person, a concept, or an inanimate object.
You have made a fool out of me for the last time, washing machine!
- antithesis
is using parallel sentences or clauses to make a contrast.
No pain, no gain.
- sarcasm
is using irony to mock something or to show contempt.
Oh, yeah, he is a great guy. A great guy who took the last slice of
pizza.
- consonance
is a repetition of consonants or consonant sounds.
Mike likes Ike's bike.
- rhetorical question
is a question that isn't intended to be answered. The
point of asking the question is to make an audience think or to cause an
emotional reaction.
Can we really know what our place in the universe is? We have asked
ourselves this question for millennia.
- epithet
An epithet is a nickname or descriptive term used to refer to someone.
You need to listen to me and not Clueless Kevin over there.
- anaphora
is the repetition of a word or words at the start of phrases,
clauses, or sentences.
I came, I saw, I conquered.
- climax
is ordering words so that they build up in intensity.
Look at the sky! It's a bird! A plane! Superman!
- cacophony
is the act of purposefully using harsh sounds.
The gnashing of teeth and screeching of bats kept me awake.
- assonance
Assonance is the repetition of the same vowel sound with different
consonants.
She and Lee see the bees in the tree.
- pun
is when one humorously uses words with multiple
meanings or words with similar sounds to create wordplay.
The farmer tried to get his cows to get along, but they insisted on
having a beef with each other.
- parallelism
is using grammatically similar phrases or sentences together.
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
- aphorism
is a short sentence that presents truth or opinion, usually in a
witty or clever manner.
A penny saved is a penny earned.
- synecdoche
is when a part of something is used to refer to a whole.
The commander had an army of 10,000 swords.
(The people holding the swords were there, too.)
- parody
is an imitation of something with the intent to poke fun at it.
If Edgar Allen Poe had written this speech, it might have opened
with "Here we are, weak and weary, gathered on a Monday dreary."
- colloquialism
is an instance of informal language or a local expression.
The act of using such language is also called colloquialism.
Here in Philly, we love to eat hoagies and all kinds of tasty jawns.
- understatement
is using language to intentionally lessen a major thing or
event.
The erupting volcano was a little problem for the neighboring city.
- syllogism
is an argument based on deductive reasoning that uses
generalizations to reach specific conclusions. Usually, a syllogism follows
the format of "A is B. B is C. So, A is C."
Dogs are mammals. Biscuit is a dog. Therefore, Biscuit is a mammal.
- eponym
refers to "a word based on or derived from a person's name,"
such as the Gallup poll, named after statistician G.H. Gallup, or Reagonomics
(a combination of the last name Reagan and economics). As a rhetorical
device, an eponym can be an allusion to a famous person.
He is the Captain America of chess.
- metonymy
is when the name of something is replaced with something related to
it.
He loved music from the cradle (birth) to the grave (death).
- parenthesis
is an interruption used for clarity.
The audience, or at least the paying members of the audience,
enjoyed the show.
- expletive
is an interrupting word or phrase used for
emphasis.
The eggs were not, in any sense of the word, delicious.
- metanoia
metanoia refers to any instance of self-correction. Metanoia can
involve things like retracting a previous statement to replace it with a new
one or amplifying a previous statement by using stronger language.
We'll work on it on Sunday. No, let's make that Monday—it's the
weekend after, all!
- chiasmus
is reversing the grammatical order in two otherwise parallel phrases
or sentences.
Dog owners own dogs and cats own cat owners.
- asyndeton
is the removal of conjunctions from a sentence.
Get in, cause a distraction, get out.