Question

Match each type of figurative language to its example.

Match
Term
Definition
Simile
A) My opponent's face became a white sheet when he saw me arrive.
Metaphor
B) I defeated my opponent as easily as sliding a knife through butter
Allusion
C) The heartbeat of the win beat loudly in the loser's ear
Personification
D) The winner said, "I had a dream that one day I would taste victory."
Paradox
E) Winning is sweetest when the opponent is the toughestâ

Answer 1

A) My opponent's face became a white sheet when he saw me arrive: Metaphor

A metaphor is a figure of speech that asserts that one element (person, animal, thing, quality, event, etc.) is similar to another element, not literally but figuratively. A white sheet is a metaphor to describe the look of the opponent's face.

B) I defeated my opponent as easily as sliding a knife through butter: Simile

Similes are figures of speech that compares one element (action, event, person, place, animal, thing) to another while employing the words "as", and "like." The speaker uses it when describing how he or she defeated their opponent.

C) The heartbeat of the win beat loudly in the loser's ear: Personification

Personification is when a thing, idea, abstract quality, nature, emotion, event or unanimated object is given human attributes like pondering, cooking and talking. This is used in the sentence when the unanimated thing “win” is given the human attribute of having a heartbeat.

D) The winner said, "I had a dream that one day I would taste victory.": Allusion

Allusion is a figure of speech that provides a brief and indirect reference to something (like a phrase, a place, idea, a literary work) or a person that is commonly known and has a significance or importance. The sentence uses allusion to make an indirect reference to Martin Luther King, Jr.'s famous speech I Have a Dream, in which he repeatedly pronounces the phrase I have a dream that one day...

E) Winning is sweetest when the opponent is the toughest: Paradox

A paradox is a literary device that uses statements that may seem silly, contradictory, and usually opposite to what is commonly believed or accepted, but that has a great potential to be true, and it is most of the time.

This sentence is a great example of paradox because we would normally not think that playing in a game where the opponent is very difficult to beat can be pleasant. However, if we give it a second thought, it is very likely that if we get to beat a fierce competitor, the victory may feel even better.

Answer 2

A) Metaphor, B) Simile, C) Personification, D) Paradox, E) Allusion

Step-by-step explanation:

A) is an example of a metaphor because it's a comparison of 2 unrelated things (the opponents face and a white sheet) without the use of words "like" or "as".

B) is an example of a simile because of the use of the word "as", and again, the comparison between 2 unrelated objects.

C) is an example of personification because an inanimate object has been given a human attribute. The win had a "heartbeat" which is an attribute of a human.

D) is an example of a paradox because the statement appears to be a bit self-contradictory but is true.

E) is an example of an allusion because it's an indirect reference to a person, place, or thing.