Saying more than the words
Call someone 'a night owl' and nobody pictures feathers — you mean they stay up late. Figurative language like metaphor and simile paints a vivid picture by comparing, so 'her voice was velvet' tells you more than 'her voice was smooth.'
Saying more than the literal
Figurative language paints pictures. A simile compares using 'like' or 'as' ('brave as a lion'). A metaphor says one thing IS another ('time is a thief'). Personification gives human traits to non-human things ('the wind whispered').
Simile: Her smile was like sunshine. Metaphor: Her smile was sunshine.
Lab · Name the device
- Read: 'The stars danced in the sky.'
- Ask: are stars being compared, or given a human action?
- Decide which device it is.
What you should see: Stars are given the human action of dancing — that's personification.