Figure of Speech - Definition, Examples, Quiz and Explanation

Figure of Speech - Definition, Examples, Quiz and Explanation | Trick

- April 24, 2026

Figure of Speech:

Dear students, If you have less time, focus on these 5 ONLY:

✔️ Simile

✔️ Metaphor

✔️ Personification

✔️ Alliteration

✔️ Hyperbole

✍️✍️ Useful Content for you:

Easy Peasy Tip , One line Tip

(Quick Revision Trick)

Alliteration = repetition of the same beginning sound
Apostrophe = Addressing someone absent or non-living
Hyperbole = exaggeration (even with like/as sometimes) or impossible
Irony = opposite of what is expected
Metaphor = No “like/as” + direct statement
Onomatopoeia = Words that imitate sound
Oxymoron = Two opposite words together
Personification = non-living thing do human action
Pun = One word → two meanings
Simile = comparison using “like” or “as”

✍️✍️ Notes:

📌📌Alliteration : Alliteration is the repetition of the same beginning consonant sound in nearby words.

Examples:

Moon makes a magical mood.

The mighty moon moves silently.

Moonlight makes me melancholy.

The misty moon melts into the night.

👉 Explanation:

Words like moon, makes, magical, mood repeat the ‘m’ sound — that’s Alliteration.

✅ So, repeated starting sound → Alliteration

Quiz . Identify the figure of speech used in the slogan:
"Clean City, Cool Climate”

A. Simile
B. Metaphor
C. Alliteration ✅
D. Hyperbole

Answer: Alliteration

👉 Because the same starting sound “C” is repeated:

Clean – City – Cool – Climate

🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯

Apostrophe:

Apostrophe is a figure of speech in which the speaker directly addresses an absent person, an abstract idea, or a non-living object as if it were present and capable of understanding.

Examples

O Death, where is thy sting?
Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are!
O Moon, guide me through the night.
Oh Time, please slow down!
Freedom! You are so precious.

Simple Understanding

👉 Talking to someone/something that is not actually there.
👉 Treating it like it can listen or respond.

✖️ Don’t confuse with Personification:

Personification: Giving human qualities

Example: The wind whispered.

Apostrophe: Directly talking to it

Example: O wind, listen to me!

Exam Trick (Very Important ⭐)

✔ Look for words like: O, Oh at the beginning
✔ Check: Are we talking to something non-living / absent / abstract?
✔ If YES → Apostrophe

🧨 Quiz :

O Time, please stop for a moment!

a) Apostrophe ✔️

b) Metonymy

c) Hyperbole

d) Personification

Explanation:

The speaker is directly addressing Time.

Time is an abstract idea, not a real person.

🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾🎾

Hyperbole : It is a figure of speech in which something is exaggerated for emphasis or effect.

Examples

I have told you a million times.

I am so hungry I could eat a horse.

She cried a river.

This bag weighs a ton.

He runs faster than the wind.

Easy Trick

👉 If something is overstated / not literally possible → Hyperbole

Quiz : Which sentence shows hyperbole?
a) He is as brave as a lion
b) She is very tired
c) I am dying of laughter ✔️
d) The sun is hot

Explanation:

The person is not actually dying; he is just laughing a lot.

Hyerbple is used to show strong feeling (very funny situation)

Why others are not hyperbole:

a) He is as brave as a lion → Simile (uses “as”)
b) She is very tired → Normal statement (no exaggeration)
d) The sun is hot → Fact (no exaggeration)

📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌📌

✍️✍️ Irony: Irony means a contrast between expectation and reality (something opposite happens).

✍️Examples:

1. The bright moon lit the sky, yet the night felt darker than ever.

2. The cheerful moon smiled above a very lonely world.

3. The full moon shone brilliantly, but no one noticed its beauty.

✍️ Explanation:

The moon is usually linked with beauty, calm, brightness, but the sentence shows the opposite feeling (darkness, loneliness, neglect) — that’s Irony.

So, when contrast/opposite meaning is shown → Irony is used.

Quiz : The richest man in the town is unhappy.
a) Irony ✔️
b) Alliteration
c) Metaphor
d) Simile

Ans. Irony

We usually expect that a rich person is happy because they have money, comfort, and luxury.

👉 But here, the opposite happens —
Even though he is rich, he is unhappy.

👉 This contrast between expectation (rich = happy) and reality (rich but unhappy) creates Irony.

✅ So, it is Irony because it shows an unexpected opposite situation.

🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢🥢

Metaphor:

A metaphor is a figure of speech in which two different things are directly compared without using “like” or “as”.

Examples

Time is money.
The classroom is a zoo.
He is a lion in the battlefield.
Life is a journey.
Her voice is music to my ears.

Easy Trick

👉 If comparison is direct (no “like/as”) → Metaphor
👉 If “like/as” is used → Simile

Quiz : “He is a shining star.”

A. Simile
B. Metaphor ✅
C. Alliteration
D. Irony

Explanation:

👉 Person is directly called a star.

Quick Trick for Exam:

👉 No “like/as”

👏 direct comparison.

🙏 “is / are” often used.

🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗🎗

Onomatopoeia = Onomatopoeia is a figure of speech where words imitate or represent natural sounds.

Common Examples

Buzz (bee sound)
Bang (explosion sound)
Splash (water sound)
Tick-tock (clock sound)
Meow (cat sound)
Roar (lion sound)

Sentence Examples

The bees buzzed in the garden.
The door closed with a loud bang.
The water made a splash.
The clock went tick-tock.

How to Identify (Exam Trick)

👉 Ask yourself:
“Can I hear this word?”

YES → Onomatopoeia ✅
NO → Not Onomatopoeia ❌

Quiz :

Identify the figure of speech:
“The bees buzzed around the flowers.”

A. Simile
B. Metaphor
C. Onomatopoeia ✔️
D. Hyperbole

👉 Explanation:
“Buzzed” represents the sound of bees → Onomatopoeia

🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨

Oxymoron = An Oxymoron is a figure of speech in which two opposite or contradictory words are used together.

👉 Simple idea:
Opposite words together = Oxymoron

Common Examples

Sweet sorrow
Deafening silence
Open secret
Bittersweet
Living dead
Awfully good

Sentence Examples

The parting was a sweet sorrow.
There was a deafening silence in the room.
It is an open secret in the village.
The movie had a bittersweet ending.

How to Identify (Exam Trick)

👉 Ask:
“Are two opposite meanings used together?”

YES → Oxymoron
NO → Not Oxymoron

Quiz. Identify the figure of speech:
“The silence was deafening.”

A. Simile
B. Metaphor
C. Oxymoron ✅
D. Hyperbole

👉 Explanation:
“Deafening” (loud) + “silence” (quiet) = opposite → Oxymoron

🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

📌📌 Personification= Giving human traits to non-living things

Personification is a figure of speech in which human qualities, feelings, or actions are given to non-living things, animals, or ideas.

Examples:

The moon smiled at me.
The wind whispered softly.
The flowers danced in the breeze.

❓️Quiz : Which of the following is NOT personification?

A. The moon is smiling

B. The stars winked

C. The clock laughed

D. She is as brave as a lion ✅

Options A, B, C (Personification)

“The moon is smiling” → Moon (non-living) doing human action (smiling)
“The stars winked” → Stars (non-living) doing human action (winking)
“The clock laughed” → Clock (non-living) doing human action (laughing)

Option D (NOT Personification)

“She is as brave as a lion”

👉 This uses “as…as” comparison
👉 It compares a person to a lion

➡️ This is Simile, NOT Personification

🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍🌍

Pun = A Pun is a figure of speech that uses a word (or words) with more than one meaning or words that sound alike to create a humorous or clever effect.

Simple Understanding

👉 One word → two meanings

👉 OR similar-sounding words used for fun / humor

Examples

I used to be a banker, but I lost interest.

👉 “Interest” = money + curiosity

Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.

👉 “Flies” has two meanings (verb + insect)

A bicycle can’t stand on its own because it is two-tired.

👉 “Two-tired” = too tired + two tyres

I wondered why the ball was getting bigger, then it hit me.

👉 “Hit” = realization + actual hit

❓️Quiz : The math teacher has too many problems.

a) Pun✔️

b) Personification

c) Hyperbole

d) Alliteration

Explanation: “Problems” = math questions + personal troubles ( two meanings)

🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐🌐

🧨🧨 Simile = Simile is a figure of speech in which two different things are compared using “like” or “as”.

Examples:

Her face is like the moon.
He is as brave as a lion.
The night is as quiet as a grave.

❓️Quiz : Which sentence shows a simile?

A. Time is money.
B. The stars danced in the sky.
C. He fights like a tiger .☑️
D. The sun smiled.

🥢 Explanation:

Option A → Metaphor
Options B, D → Personification
Option C → Uses “like” → Simile

Simile = Like / As + Comparison

Useful for aspirants ; let's share.

🙏🙏 Join us to get more:

WhatsApp : Click here to join us

Telegram : CLICK HERE

Facebook : CLICK HERE

Youtube : https://youtube.com/@AcmeMittal

Instagram: CLICK HERE