Figurative Language

Introduction

Infer meaning beyond the literal words

Figurative language asks readers to connect a literal image with an implied quality. Use context to paraphrase the intended meaning and explain its effect on tone, emphasis, or imagery. Do not interpret a figure literally.

Optional supporting reference—not a must-memorize taxonomy: a simile makes an explicit comparison, often with like or as; a metaphor presents one thing as another; personification attributes human action to something nonhuman; hyperbole deliberately exaggerates. The useful skill is explaining what the expression means in context.

Worked example: “By noon, the unanswered messages had become a mountain.” A literal mountain is impossible here. The image transfers great size and difficulty to the backlog, so a precise paraphrase is the large accumulation of messages felt difficult to manage. That explanation matters more than the device label.

Distinguish figurative from literal use

Words such as like do not automatically create similes: “She works like her sister” may describe similar behavior without an imaginative comparison. Likewise, vivid verbs can be literal. Test whether the literal reading is possible and whether the writer maps a quality from one thing to another.

Explain the effect, not only the label

Figures can support an author's purpose, but they are not evidence by themselves. Explain the specific association rather than merely naming a device.