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Literary Devices and Figures of Speech

Includes questions related to rules and methods used in literature and using words, terms and sentences in figurative or nonliteral ways;

3,204 Questions

What is the figurative language for it was raining cats and dogs?

No, hyperbole is an exaggeration. "Raining hard enough to wash the town away" would be hyperbole. "Raining cats and dogs" is an idiom because it makes no sense when you translate it literally.

What is the metaphor about someone who is very smart?

Metaphors used about someone perceived to be very smart might include:

[Name is] a real brain surgeon (provided [Name] isn't a real brain surgeon)

[Name is] a genuine rocket scientist (provided [Name] isn't a genuine rocket scientist)

[Name is] a total Einstein

[Name's] brain's an Apple Mac

[Name's] mind is Intel enhanced (provided the person saying this isn't someone who believes the 'Intel Inside' label is known to technicians as the 'Warning Sticker')

You might also want similes about someone who is very smart? There are quite a few, including:

[Name is] a smart cookie

[Name is] so sharp they'll cut themselves

And, all beginning with As…, as in '[Name] is as…

…bright as a button

…bright as a lightbulb

…clever as [name of someone famous for being very clever] - Einstein, and so on

…clever as a cartload [US: wagonload] of monkeys

…clever as a fox

…cute as a fox

…sharp as a [very sharp thing] - tack, razor, or other sharp instrument

…smart as [name of someone famous for being smart] - Einstein, and so on

…smart as a whip

These could all lose the 'As…', and be expressed '[Name is] bright like a lightbulb'; '[Name is] cute like a fox', and so on.

Which type of figurative language is used in this sentence?

To not talk literally in a sentence.

example of a literal sentence: go away. <--to change that to a figurative sentence you would say: go take a hike

you wouldn't want the person to actually go into the mountains and explore would you?

Can you give me 15 figure of speech?

Tropes

Definition

Example

metaphor

the substitution of a word for a word whose meaning is close to the original word

Poor broken glass, I often did behold/ In thy sweet semblance my old age new born...---The Rape of Lucrece,1758-59

metonymy

a noun is substituted for a noun in such a way that we substitute the cause of the thing of which we are speaking for the thing itself; this might be done in several ways: substituting the inventor for his invention, the container for the thing contained or vice versa, an author for his work, the sign for the thing signified, the cause for the effect or vice versa

I must comfort the weaker vessel, as doublet and hoseought to show itself courageous to petticoat.---As You Like It, 2.4.6

synecdoche

substitution of part for whole, genus for species, or vice versa

Was this the face that launched a thousand ships,/ And burnt the topless towers of Ilium?---Dr. Faustus, 12.80-81

irony

expressing a meaning directly contrary to that suggested by the words

He was no notorious malefactor, but he had been twice on the pillory, and once burnt in the hand for trifling oversights.---Direccions for Speech and Style

metalepsis

a double metonymy in which an effect is represented by a remote cause

Woe worth the mountain that the mast bear/ Which was the first causer of all my care (Medea cursing Jason).---The Arte of English Poesie, 183

paradox

a seemingly self contradictory statement, which yet is shown to be true

For what the waves could never wash away/ This proper youth has wasted in a day.---The Arte of English Poesie, 226

oxymoron

a condensed paradox at the level of a phrase

O modest wantons! wanton modesty!---The Rape of Lucrece, 401

anthimeria

the substitution of one part of speech for another; for instance, an adverb for a noun or a noun for an adverb

Lord Angelo dukes it well.---Measure for Measure, 3.2.100

litotes

deliberate understatement or denial of the contrary

He is no fool.---The Arte of English Poesie, 184

hyperbole

exaggerated or extravagant statement used to make a strong impression, but not intended to be taken literally

His legs bestrid the ocean, his rear'd arm/ Crested the world, his voice was propertied/ As all the tuned spheres...---Antony and Cleopatra, 5.2.82

How do you use idioms?

You can use several methods to figure out what an idiom or slang term means. 1. Be sure that you understand the meaning of each word in the phrase. Use a dictionary if needed. 2. See if you can figure out the meaning by the context of the entire sentence or paragraph. For example: "Sam was a man to ride the river with, and worthy of respect." You can see that this phrase means something good instead of something bad, even if you don't understand that it means someone who can be counted on during tough times, who will support you and not abandon you during trouble. "Don't get your back up about what Matt said - he was just teasing." This phrase obviously means something like "get angry" or "get your feelings hurt," even if you don't know that it refers to the fact that a horse (or many other animals) will arch their back up when they get angry - another form of this phrase would be "bowed up." 3. Ask a native speaker, or look up the idiom (see the Related Links for websites)!

What figure of speech is your teeth chattered?

To make one's teeth chatter, it might be necessary to walk outside in very cold weather.

Standing outside in the cold is all it takes to make one's teeth chatter.

What is an adage about dogs?

  • Every dog has its day.
  • dog tired
  • hot dog (the food, also to show off)
  • to work like a dog
  • be as sick as a dog
  • you lucky dog
  • You can't teach an old dog new tricks.
  • a dog and pony show
  • (It's a case of) the tail wagging the dog
  • Let sleeping dogs lie.
  • call off the dogs
  • It's a dog eat dog world.
  • (He/She is a real) dirty dog!
  • meaner than a junkyard dog
  • underdog, (example: He's the underdog in the race.)

How many words have the prefix de?

Some words that start with the prefix 'de' (go down or away, completely, remove or reverse) are:

  • deactivate
  • debate
  • decamp
  • deduct
  • deescalate
  • defeat
  • degrade
  • dehydrate
  • deify
  • deject
  • delivery
  • delouse
  • demote
  • denude
  • deodorant
  • depend
  • depreciate
  • descend
  • deter
  • detest
  • develop

What does 'If you're game' mean?

Are you ready to play (his game)?

Will you go along with his plan?

Are you open (to doing something stupid)?

What does the term bear with me mean?

It comes from bear used as in "bear a burden", meaning to uphold or deal with a burden. It is asking the listener to patiently bear the burden of waiting for whatever the speaker is doing/saying.

What is the abbreviation for there are?

There are does not have an accepted contracted form. Many people use there're to shorten this phrase, but this contraction is incorrect (not to mention very difficult to pronounce).

When does the inciting incident in a plot generally come after?

The initiating incident comes after the exposition and before the rising action.... The exposition is the very beginning part of a story where the main characters and the setting are introduced. So basically it just tells you who the story is about, where it is, and so far what is going on. Then it's time for the initiating incident... The initiating incident is what first happens to start the whole story. For example in Spider Man, the initiating incident is when he gets bit by a spider, cause that's where the whole story begins.... And the exposition is the very beginning when it explains the basics- his name is Peter Parker, he's not very popular in high school but he gets good grades and is especially good at science, he lives with his aunt and uncle, and he has a crush on a girl named Marry Jane.

Name the rhetorical device that supports a claim on the grounds that the alternative is too awful to deal with?

'Believe this or I shall hit you' is called the Argumentum ad Baculum (the Argument with a Stick) in formal logic. It is also sometimes called the appeal to force.

In order to function at all this argument needs to be delivered by someone who actually has the capacity to harm the person that they are trying to convince. It is hence an established favourite with doorstep evangelists and very young children.

Who is a hero... and why?

A villain is an evildoer, a bad guy, or an antagonist, an enemy.

The term derives from "free" vassals (villeins) in feudal Europe who were answerable only to the feudal lord, or liege, and were therefore higher in social status than ordinary serfs. The unchivalrous actions of some villeins led to the modern connotation of an evil or wicked person.

Suffix end with y?

puppy

army

supply

sky

party

library

rely

marry

theory

study

apply

ability

activity

ally

baby

battery

body

canary

cavity

colony

company

daddy

dairy

deputy

diary

What does he idom slip through ones fingers mean?

This idiom implies that someone has wasted or ignored something precious that cannot be retrieved or restored. For example: "Jeremy let his youth slip through his fingers, and now he was a bitter man approaching old age alone."

Is it correct to say I am glad to be of help to you?

My problem with your phrase is that your verb is ' to be' and you are using 'of help' as a noun (an instance of helping).

This is OK but one would usually use this sort of phrase (contracted to - "glad to be of help" or more correctly "glad to have been of help") in response to a 'thank you' from someone else (they would be thanking you for assisting them).

If you were offering someone help you would say:- "Can I be of help" or, using 'help' as the verb, "Can I help"

However if you are currently helping someone and you want to say how much you are enjoying the experience you would phrase it thus:- "I am glad to be helping you".