A figure of speech is a word or phrase used in a non-literal way to achieve a specific effect: to make an idea more vivid, to create an emotional impact, to add beauty or rhythm to language, or to illuminate a truth through comparison, contrast or creative expression. Every great speech, every celebrated poem, every memorable line in literature uses figures of speech to do what plain language cannot: to make the reader or listener feel something, see something and understand something more deeply than a literal statement would allow.

This page provides a complete guide to figures of speech. It covers the definition and purpose of a figure of speech, a comprehensive treatment of all major types of figure of speech, including simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, alliteration, irony, antithesis, repetition and apostrophe, with clear definitions and multiple examples. Exercises and FAQs complete the guide.

What is a Figure of Speech?
Types of Figure of Speech
Other Important Figures of Speech
Figure of Speech and Examples: Quick Reference Table
Practice Exercises

What is a Figure of Speech?

A figure of speech is a word, phrase or expression used in a way that differs from its literal meaning in order to achieve a particular rhetorical, poetic or communicative effect.

Part of Speech: Noun phrase

Plural: Figures of speech

Also Known as: Rhetorical figure, trope, literary device

Figure of Speech in Sentences

Time is money. (metaphor)
The stars danced in the night sky. (personification)
I have told you a million times. (hyperbole)
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. (alliteration)
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. (antithesis)

Types of Figure of Speech

Figures of speech are conventionally grouped into two broad categories:

Tropes: Tropes involve a change or extension of a word’s meaning. They use language in a way that diverges from its literal sense. Major tropes include simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, irony, oxymoron, synecdoche, metonymy and euphemism.
Schemes: Schemes involve a departure from ordinary word order or arrangement. They affect the structure of language rather than its meaning. Major schemes include alliteration, assonance, repetition, anaphora, antithesis and onomatopoeia.

1. Simile

A simile is a figure of speech that makes a direct comparison between two unlike things using the words ‘like’, ‘as’, ‘as…as’ or ‘than’.

Definition

Simile Examples

Simile in Literature

A simile compares one thing to another thing of a different kind in order to make a description more vivid or to illuminate a quality shared between the two.

Her voice was like music. (comparing voice to music using ‘like’)

He was as brave as a lion. (comparing bravery to a lion using ‘as…as’)

The child slept like a log. (comparing sleep to a log using ‘like’)

Life is like a box of chocolates. (comparing life to chocolates using ‘like’)

Her smile was as bright as the sun. (comparing smile to sun using ‘as…as’)

The news spread faster than wildfire. (comparing speed using ‘than’)

He ran like the wind. (comparing speed to wind using ‘like’)

My love is like a red, red rose. (Robert Burns)

I wandered lonely as a cloud. (William Wordsworth)

Life is as tedious as a twice-told tale. (William Shakespeare)

2. Metaphor

A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes a direct comparison between two unlike things by stating that one thing IS the other without using comparison words.

Definition

Metaphor Examples

Metaphor in Literature

A metaphor describes one thing in terms of another, asserting an identity between them rather than a similarity. Unlike a simile, a metaphor does not say something is LIKE something else; it says it IS something else.

Life is a journey. (life is described as a journey)

Time is money. (time is described as money)

The world is a stage. (Shakespeare: the world is described as a stage)

He has a heart of stone. (his heart is described as stone)

She is the light of my life. (she is described as light)

The mind is an ocean. (the mind is described as an ocean)

Books are mirrors of the soul. (books are described as mirrors)

The classroom was a zoo. (the classroom is described as a zoo)

Hope is the thing with feathers. (Emily Dickinson)

The fog comes on little cat feet. (Carl Sandburg)

All our words are but crumbs that fall down from the feast of the mind. (Khalil Gibran)

3. Personification

Personification is a figure of speech in which human qualities, emotions or actions are attributed to non-human things such as objects, animals, ideas or natural phenomena.

Definition

Personification Examples

Personification in Literature

Personification gives human characteristics to something that is not human, allowing the writer to describe the non-human world in terms of human experience.

The wind whispered through the trees. (whispering is a human action)

The sun smiled down on the children. (smiling is a human expression)

The stars danced in the night sky. (dancing is a human action)

The flowers nodded in the breeze. (nodding is a human gesture)

The ocean roared its anger. (anger is a human emotion)

Time flies. (flying is a human-attributed action for an abstract concept)

The moon hid her face behind the clouds. (hiding is a human action; ‘her’ gives gender)

Death came knocking at the door. (knocking is a human action given to Death)

The mountains stood as silent sentinels. (sentinel is a human role)

The old house groaned in the winter wind. (groaning is a human expression)

Because I could not stop for Death, he kindly stopped for me. (Emily Dickinson)

The fog comes on little cat feet. (Carl Sandburg)

I have measured out my life with coffee spoons. (T.S. Eliot)

4. Hyperbole

Hyperbole is a figure of speech that uses extreme exaggeration for emphasis or effect. The exaggeration is not meant to be taken literally.

Definition

Hyperbole Examples

Hyperbole in Literature

Hyperbole is deliberate overstatement used to intensify an emotion, emphasise a point or create a comic or dramatic effect.

I have told you a million times. (not literally a million)

I am so hungry I could eat a horse. (not literally a horse)

He has a mountains of homework. (not literal mountains)

She cried an ocean of tears. (not a literal ocean)

I have been waiting for ages. (not literally ages)

His voice was so loud it could wake the dead. (not literally)

I am dying of embarrassment. (not literally dying)

This bag weighs a ton. (not literally a ton)

The whole world was watching. (not literally the whole world)

I could sleep for a year. (not literally a year)

Here once the embattled farmers stood / And fired the shot heard round the world. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Was this the face that launched a thousand ships? (Christopher Marlowe)

I’ll love you, dear, I’ll love you / Till China and Africa meet. (W.H. Auden)

5. Alliteration

Alliteration is a figure of speech in which the same consonant sound is repeated at the beginning of consecutive or closely connected words.

Definition

Alliteration Examples

Alliteration in Literature

Alliteration is the repetition of the same initial consonant sound in a series of words in close proximity.

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. (repeated ‘p’ sound)

She sells seashells by the seashore. (repeated ‘s’ sound)

Big, bad, bold. (repeated ‘b’ sound)

The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew. (Samuel Taylor Coleridge; repeated ‘f’ and ‘b’ sounds)

Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before. (Edgar Allan Poe; repeated ‘d’ sound)

Silent, sad and still. (repeated ‘s’ sound)

The wind whispered wildly. (repeated ‘w’ sound)

Round and round the rugged rock the ragged rascal ran. (repeated ‘r’ sound)

Fair is foul, and foul is fair. (Shakespeare, Macbeth)

In a summer season when soft was the sun. (William Langland)

With blackest moss the flower-pots / Were thickly crusted, one and all. (Alfred Lord Tennyson)

6. Irony

Irony is a figure of speech in which the intended meaning is different from, and often opposite to, the literal meaning of the words.

Definition

Irony Examples

Irony in Literature

Irony occurs when what is said is different from what is meant, when what happens is different from what is expected, or when there is a gap between appearance and reality.

What a lovely day! (said during a terrible storm)

Oh, brilliant! (said when something goes badly wrong)

That was incredibly helpful. (said when someone has been unhelpful)

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. (Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice; the opening line is ironic: it is not a universal truth at all, but a social convention satirised)

This is the most unkindest cut of all. (Shakespeare, Julius Caesar; Brutus’s betrayal presented with savage irony)

7. Antithesis

Antithesis is a figure of speech in which contrasting ideas are placed in parallel grammatical structures, usually in the same sentence or adjacent sentences.

Definition

Antithesis Examples

Antithesis juxtaposes opposite or contrasting ideas in balanced parallel structures to create emphasis, contrast and rhetorical effect.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. (Charles Dickens)

To err is human; to forgive, divine. (Alexander Pope)

Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice. (Shakespeare)

Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. (John F. Kennedy)

Speech is silver, silence is golden.

Man proposes, God disposes.

Easy come, easy go.

United we stand, divided we fall.

We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. (Winston Churchill)

Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none. (Shakespeare)

8. Repetition

Repetition is a figure of speech in which a word, phrase, sentence or sound is repeated for emphasis, rhythm or emotional effect.

Definition

Repetition Examples

Repetition involves the deliberate reuse of the same word, phrase or structure multiple times in a passage to create emphasis, build momentum or create an emotional or musical effect.

Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, we are free at last. (Martin Luther King Jr.)

We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets. (Winston Churchill)

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness. (Charles Dickens)

Mad world! Mad kings! Mad composition! (Shakespeare)

And miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep. (Robert Frost)

9. Apostrophe

Apostrophe as a figure of speech (not to be confused with the punctuation mark) involves directly addressing an absent person, a dead person, an abstract idea or a non-human entity as though they are present and capable of understanding.

Definition

Apostrophe Examples

Apostrophe is a figure of speech in which a speaker or writer addresses an absent or imaginary person, a personified abstract quality or a non-human object directly.

O Death, where is thy sting? (addressing Death directly)

O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? (Shakespeare; Juliet addressing the absent Romeo)

O Liberty, what crimes are committed in thy name! (addressing the abstract concept of Liberty)

Milton! thou shouldst be living at this hour. (Wordsworth; addressing the dead poet)

Roll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll! (Byron; addressing the ocean)

O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn’s being. (Shelley; addressing the West Wind)

Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are. (addressing a star)

Other Important Figures of Speech

1. Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia is a figure of speech in which words imitate the sounds they describe.

Definition

Onomatopoeia Examples

A word that phonetically imitates, resembles or suggests the sound it describes.

The bees buzzed in the garden.

The brook babbled over the stones.

The thunder crashed overhead.

The cat hissed at the dog.

The leaves rustled in the breeze.

Sizzle, crackle, pop, bang, boom, splash, drip, murmur, whisper, roar.

2. Oxymoron

An oxymoron is a figure of speech that combines two apparently contradictory terms.

Definition

Oxymoron Examples

The juxtaposition of two seemingly opposite words to create a paradoxical expression that contains a deeper truth.

Sweet sorrow (Shakespeare: Parting is such sweet sorrow)

Living death

Deafening silence

Bitter sweet

Open secret

Clearly confused

Organised chaos

Original copy

Dark light

Cruel kindness

3. Euphemism

A euphemism is a figure of speech that substitutes a mild, indirect or vague expression for one that might be considered too harsh, blunt or offensive.

Definition

Euphemism Examples

A polite or indirect word or phrase used in place of one that might cause offence or discomfort.

Pass away (instead of ‘die’)

Let go (instead of ‘fire’ or ‘sack’)

Collateral damage (instead of ‘civilian casualties’)

Between jobs (instead of ‘unemployed’)

Differently abled (instead of ‘disabled’)

Senior citizen (instead of ‘old person’)

Economically disadvantaged (instead of ‘poor’)

4. Assonance

Assonance is a figure of speech involving the repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words, creating an internal rhyme effect.

Definition

Assonance Examples

The repetition of the same vowel sound in a series of words in close proximity.

The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain. (repeated ‘ai’ sound)

Go slow over the road. (repeated ‘o’ sound)

Hear the mellow wedding bells. (Edgar Allan Poe; repeated ‘e’ sound)

Fleet feet sweep by sleeping geese. (repeated ‘ee’ sound)

5. Anaphora

Anaphora is a figure of speech involving the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses, sentences or lines.

Definition

Anaphora Examples

The deliberate repetition of a word or phrase at the start of successive grammatical units.

I have a dream that one day… I have a dream that one day… I have a dream… (Martin Luther King Jr.)

We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields. (Churchill)

Mad world! Mad kings! Mad composition! (Shakespeare)

Every day, every hour, every minute, I think of you.

It was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair. (Dickens)

6. Synechdoche

Synecdoche is a figure of speech in which a part is used to represent the whole, or the whole is used to represent a part.

Definition

Synecdoche Examples

Using a part of something to refer to the whole thing, or the whole to refer to a part.

All hands on deck. (hands = sailors: part for the whole)

Give us this day our daily bread. (bread = food: part for the whole)

The White House announced… (the building = the US government: place for institution)

He bought a new set of wheels. (wheels = car: part for the whole)

England won the match. (country = the team: whole for the part)

7. Metonymy

Metonymy is a figure of speech in which one word or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely associated.

Definition

Metonymy Examples

Referring to something by the name of something closely associated with it rather than by its own name.

The crown (fot the monarchy or king)

The press (for journalists and newspapers)

The White House said… (for the US President and administration)

Wall Street is nervous. (for financial markets)

The pen is mightier than the sword. (pen = writing/intellect; sword = military power)

Hollywood has released a new film. (for the film industry)

Figure of Speech and Examples: Quick Reference Table

Figure of Speech	Definition	Example
Simile	Comparison using ‘like’, ‘as’ or ‘than’	He was as brave as a lion.
Metaphor	Direct comparison without comparison words	Life is a journey.
Personification	Human qualities given to non-human things	The wind whispered through the trees.
Hyperbole	Deliberate exaggeration for effect	I have told you a million times.
Alliteration	Repetition of initial consonant sounds	She sells seashells by the seashore.
Irony	Saying one thing but meaning another	What lovely weather! (in a storm)
Antithesis	Contrasting ideas in parallel structure	It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
Repetition	Deliberate reuse of words or phrases	Free at last, free at last, free at last.
Apostrophe	Directly addressing an absent or non-human entity	O Death, where is thy sting?
Onomatopoeia	Words that imitate sounds	The bees buzzed.
Oxymoron	Contradictory terms combined	Sweet sorrow.
Euphemism	Mild expression for something harsh	Passed away (for died)
Assonance	Repetition of vowel sounds	The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain.
Anaphora	Repetition at the start of successive clauses	I have a dream...
Synecdoche	Part used to represent the whole	All hands on deck.
Metonymy	Associated word used in place of the actual word	The pen is mightier than the sword.

Practice Exercises

A. Identify the figure of speech in each of the following sentences.

He was as tall as a tower.
The stars winked at us from the night sky.
The classroom was a battlefield.
I have a million things to do today.
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
O Solitude! Where are the charms that sages have seen in thy face?
It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness.
The thunder roared like an angry giant.
Fair is foul, and foul is fair.
The brook babbled merrily over the stones.

B. Match each figure of speech to its correct example.

Figures of Speech	Examples
Metaphor	Sweet sorrow
Simile	The sea swallowed the ship.
Personification	She sells seashells by the seashore.
Hyperbole	Time is money.
Antithesis	She was as quick as lightning.
Alliteration	Oh, what a beautiful smell! (said near a drain)
Apostrophe	O Death, come to me now!
Irony	The sun laid a warm hand on his shoulder.
Onomatopoeia	The bees buzzed and the rain pattered.
Oxymoron	I could eat a mountain of food right now.

C. Classify each of the following as: simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, alliteration, irony, antithesis, repetition, or apostrophe.

Life is a dream.
Her hair was like a waterfall of gold.
The angry waves crashed against the shore.
Sink or swim, love him or hate him.
Go, go, go! We must hurry.
Oh, what a surprise! (said with obvious sarcasm)
The wind wailed all through the winter.
Lovely lemon lollipops.
This suitcase weighs as much as an elephant.
O Moon, tell me her secret.

D. Write an original example of each of the following figures of speech, using a subject from your own experience or imagination.

A simile comparing a person you know to something in nature
A metaphor describing your school or classroom
A personification of rain, wind, or sunlight
A hyperbole about the amount of work you have
A sentence using alliteration with the letter ‘s’
An antithesis about success and failure
An apostrophe addressing a concept such as time, freedom, or knowledge

Frequently Asked Questions about Figure of Speech

1. What is the difference between simile and metaphor?

Both simile and metaphor make comparisons between unlike things, but they differ in how the comparison is made. A simile uses comparison words such as ‘like’, ‘as’ or ‘than’: ‘He was as brave as a lion.’ A metaphor makes the comparison directly, stating that one thing IS another without comparison words: ‘He was a lion in battle.’ The simile says something is LIKE something else; the metaphor says it IS something else.

2. What is personification with an example?

Personification is the figure of speech that attributes human qualities, emotions, or actions to non-human things. For example, ‘The wind whispered through the trees’ gives the wind the human action of whispering. ‘The stars danced in the night sky’ gives stars the human action of dancing. ‘Death came knocking at the door’ gives the abstract concept of death the human action of knocking at a door.

3. What is apostrophe as a figure of speech?

Apostrophe as a figure of speech (completely different from the punctuation mark) involves directly addressing an absent person, a dead person, an abstract idea, or a non-human entity as though they are present and capable of hearing and responding. Examples include: ‘O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?’ (addressing an absent person), ‘O Death, where is thy sting?’ (addressing an abstract concept), and ‘Roll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll!’ (addressing a natural force).

4. What is the difference between antithesis and oxymoron?

Both antithesis and oxymoron involve contrasting or opposing ideas, but they work differently. Antithesis places contrasting ideas in separate but parallel clauses: ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times’. Oxymoron combines two contradictory qualities within a single compact expression: ‘sweet sorrow’, ‘deafening silence’, ‘living death’. Antithesis is a structural device operating at the level of clauses; oxymoron is a lexical device operating at the level of word pairs.

5. How do I remember all the figures of speech?

The most effective way to remember figures of speech is to learn each one with a memorable example that you create or choose yourself. Connect each figure of speech to a vivid, personal example: your own simile, your own metaphor, your own alliterative phrase. Learning the name alongside the example, and practising identifying them in poems, prose, and speeches you actually enjoy, builds the kind of instinctive recognition that examination questions require.

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IDK Meaning	Suffix	Complaint Letter Format	Declarative Sentences
Wild Animals Names	Simple English Sentences	Subordinating Conjunctions	Auxiliary Verbs Exercises
Acronym	Dry Fruit Names	Interrogative Sentences	Complex Sentences
Euphemism	Letter To Editor Format With Samples	Neuter Gender	Oxymoron
Names of Colours	Juxtaposition	Degrees of Comparison Exercises	Words That Start With Z

Figure of Speech: Types and Definitions Explained with Examples

Table of Contents

What is a Figure of Speech?

Figure of Speech in Sentences

Types of Figure of Speech

1. Simile

2. Metaphor

3. Personification

4. Hyperbole

5. Alliteration

6. Irony

7. Antithesis

8. Repetition

9. Apostrophe

Other Important Figures of Speech

1. Onomatopoeia

2. Oxymoron

3. Euphemism

4. Assonance

5. Anaphora

6. Synechdoche

7. Metonymy

Figure of Speech and Examples: Quick Reference Table

Practice Exercises

Frequently Asked Questions about Figure of Speech

1. What is the difference between simile and metaphor?

2. What is personification with an example?

3. What is apostrophe as a figure of speech?

4. What is the difference between antithesis and oxymoron?

5. How do I remember all the figures of speech?

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