Results for: “Juvenile Nonfiction”

Basic Skills Practice

Figurative Language

In figurative language, the words used are not meant to be taken literally. Usually, figurative language states or implies a comparison of two unlike things. Using some figurative language is a good way to make your writing more colorful and interesting.

Here are the four most common kinds of figurative language: example:

definition:

A simile directly states a comparison between two unlike things, using the word like or as.

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The sunlight sparkled like diamonds on the cool blue lake.

Personification applies human qualities of behavior to nonhuman things.

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The sparkling lake danced to the song of the wind.

A metaphor implies a comparison between two unlike things by equating one with the other.

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The sunlight was a sparkling diamond on the cool blue lake.

Hyperbole uses exaggeration.

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A million points of light sparkled on the lake.

A. Identify the type of figurative language that is used in each of the following sentences.

1. _______________________ Melissa gained a ton of weight over the holidays.

OUR hired girl, she’s ’Lizabuth Ann;

An’ she can cook best things to eat!

She ist puts dough in our pie-pan,

An’ pours in somepin’ ’at’s good and sweet,

An’ nen she salts it all on top

With cinnamon; an’ nen she’ll stop

An’ stoop an’ slide it, ist as slow,

In th’ old cook-stove, so’s ’twon’t slop

An’ git all spilled; nen bakes it, so

It’s custard pie, first thing you know!

An’ nen she’ll say:

“Clear out o’ my way!

They’s time fer work, an’ time fer play!—

Take yer dough, an’ run, Child; run!

Er I cain’t git no cookin’ done!”

When our hired girl ’tends like she’s mad,

An’ says folks got to walk the chalk

When she’s around, er wisht they had,

I play out on our porch an’ talk

To th’ Raggedy Man ’at mows our lawn;

An’ he says, “Whew!” an’ nen leans on

His old crook-scythe, and blinks his eyes,

An’ sniffs all round an’ says,—“I swawn!

Ef my old nose don’t tell me lies,