Figures of speech are ways of using words that step away from their ordinary, literal meaning, or that arrange words in a pattern people notice. Metaphors, similes, alliteration and irony all belong to this large family.
Someone in the next room calls out, “The kettle’s boiling!” Nobody expects bubbling metal. It is the water that boils, and everyone understands that at once. Everyday English is full of small shifts like this, and we rarely stop to name them.
Think of what follows as a map: the two big families, the figures you will meet most often, and the language for discussing them in an essay.
- What a figure of speech is, and how it differs from an idiom
- The two main families: tropes and schemes
- Twenty common figures of speech with clear examples
- How to tell literal and figurative meaning apart
- Phrases for analyzing a figure of speech in an essay or exam
What Is a Figure of Speech?
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The word figure here means a shape or form. A figure of speech gives your words a particular shape: either a new meaning or a pattern of sound and structure.
Writers have named a very large number of them since ancient Greece. You do not need to learn them all. About twenty do most of the work, and those are the ones below.
Pronunciation and Related Words
| Word | Sounds like | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| Figure | FIG-yer | /ˈfɪɡ.jər/ |
| Figurative | FIG-yer-uh-tiv | /ˈfɪɡ.jər.ə.tɪv/ |
| Trope | trohp | /troʊp/ |
| Rhetoric | RET-er-ik | /ˈret.ər.ɪk/ |
Useful patterns: use a figure of speech, it’s just a figure of speech, in a figurative sense, speaking figuratively. See the figure dictionary page for other meanings of the word.
Tropes and Schemes: The Two Families
A trope asks you to understand a word in a new way. “Time is a thief” does not describe a criminal; it says that time takes things from us without asking.
A scheme leaves the meanings alone and changes the form. “Veni, vidi, vici” (“I came, I saw, I conquered”) is three short verbs in a row. The power comes from the rhythm, not from any hidden meaning.
Some figures sit between the two. Irony and paradox depend on meaning, but they are often built with careful sentence patterns.
20 Common Figures of Speech
Comparison
| Figure | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Simile | Compares two things using like or as | “Her laugh was like a door slamming.” |
| Metaphor | Says one thing is another | “The classroom was a zoo by noon.” |
| Personification | Gives human qualities to things | “The old printer groaned and gave up.” |
| Apostrophe | Speaks directly to something absent or not human | “Oh, coffee, where were you this morning?” |
Substitution
| Figure | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Metonymy | Uses a closely linked thing to name something | “Hollywood loves a sequel.” (the film industry) |
| Synecdoche | Uses a part for the whole, or the whole for a part | “Nice wheels!” (a car) |
| Euphemism | Uses a softer word for something unpleasant | “He was let go.” (fired) |
| Allusion | Refers briefly to a well-known story or person | “It was his Achilles’ heel.” |
Contrast and Surprise
| Figure | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Antithesis | Opposite ideas in balanced halves | “Speak less, listen more.” |
| Oxymoron | Two opposite words side by side | “Deafening silence” |
| Paradox | A statement that seems impossible but holds a truth | “The more you know, the more you realize you don’t know.” |
| Irony | Says the opposite of what is meant | “Lovely weather,” said in a storm |
| Hyperbole | Exaggerates on purpose | “I’ve walked a thousand miles today.” |
| Understatement | Makes something sound smaller than it is | “The exam was a bit tricky,” after failing it |
Sound
| Figure | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Alliteration | Repeats the first consonant sound | “Big brown boxes” |
| Assonance | Repeats a vowel sound | “Go slow over the road” |
| Onomatopoeia | Uses a word that sounds like its meaning | “Buzz”, “sizzle”, “thud” |
Repetition and Order
| Figure | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Anaphora | Repeats words at the start of clauses | “Every day we wait, every day it costs more.” |
| Chiasmus | Reverses the order of repeated words | “Eat to live, don’t live to eat.” |
| Rhetorical question | A question asked for effect, not for an answer | “Who wouldn’t want a longer weekend?” |
Figures of Speech in Real Texts
| Source | Line | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| As You Like It, William Shakespeare | “All the world’s a stage” | Metaphor |
| A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens | “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” | Anaphora and antithesis together |
| “The Eagle,” Alfred Tennyson | “He clasps the crag with crooked hands” | Alliteration and personification |
| Proverb | “The pen is mightier than the sword.” | Metonymy (pen = writing, sword = force) |
| News headline (made up) | “City Hall Says No to New Stadium” | Metonymy (City Hall = the city government) |
Notice that one line can hold two figures at once. Dickens repeats “it was the” (a scheme) while setting best against worst (another scheme). Naming both shows a careful reader.
Literal or Figurative?
Before you name a figure, ask one question: Could this be true word for word? If the answer is no, and the speaker is not lying or mistaken, you are probably looking at a trope.
| Sentence | Literal or figurative? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| “The cat is sitting on the keyboard.” | Literal | It can be exactly true |
| “My phone is dying.” | Figurative | Phones are not alive (personification) |
| “The new manager is a breath of fresh air.” | Figurative | A person is not air (metaphor) |
| “I literally ran to the station.” | Literal | The speaker really ran |
| “I literally died laughing.” | Figurative | Literally is used here as an intensifier |
The last row shows a real change in modern English. Many speakers use literally to mean “really” or “very.” Major dictionaries now record this informal sense, but avoid it in formal writing.
Check your answer
How to Write About Figures of Speech
In literature essays, reading tests and exams, you need more than the name. A simple three-step frame works well: name it, quote it, explain the effect.
| Step | Useful phrases |
|---|---|
| Name it | “The writer uses a metaphor…”, “This is an example of…”, “The line relies on…” |
| Quote it | “…in the phrase ‘a sea of paperwork’…”, “…when the speaker says…” |
| Explain the effect | “…which suggests…”, “…to emphasize…”, “…creating a sense of…”, “…which makes the reader feel…” |
Example answer: “The writer uses personification in ‘the wind clawed at the windows’ to suggest that the storm is almost an attacker, creating a sense of danger inside the house.”
Choose precise verbs for the effect. Suggests and implies point to hidden meaning. Emphasizes and highlights point to importance. Evokes is for feelings and memories. For more ways to discuss persuasive language, see our C2 lesson on metaphor and simile.
Figure of Speech vs Idiom vs Figurative Language
| Term | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Figurative language | Any language that is not meant literally | The general category |
| Figure of speech | One named technique within that category | Metaphor, hyperbole, anaphora |
| Idiom | A fixed phrase whose meaning you cannot guess from the words | “Break the ice”, “under the weather” |
Many idioms started life as fresh figures of speech and then froze into fixed phrases. Our list of 100 idioms is a good place to see how many of them began as metaphors.
Common Mistakes Learners Make
- The plural: write figures of speech, not “figure of speeches.” The -s goes on the main noun.
- Simile or metaphor: a simile needs like or as. “He is as stubborn as a mule” is a simile; “He is a mule” is a metaphor.
- “Just a figure of speech” is not an excuse. It means “not literal,” not “not true.” “I could eat a horse” is a figure of speech; a false claim is simply false.
- Label hunting: listing six device names with no comment on their effect earns little credit. One figure explained well is worth more.
Practice: Test Your Understanding
Part A. Name the figure of speech in each sentence.
- “The alarm clock screamed at six.”
- “Peter picked a pack of pears.”
- “The suits on the top floor decided to cut costs.”
- “Her smile was as bright as a stadium light.”
- “Wonderful, another meeting,” he said, sighing.
Show answers for Part A
- Personification – an alarm clock cannot scream.
- Alliteration – the repeated /p/ sound.
- Synecdoche – “suits” (part of what managers wear) stands for the managers.
- Simile – a comparison with as … as.
- Irony – he means the opposite of “wonderful.”
Part B. Rewrite each plain sentence using the figure of speech in brackets.
- “I am very tired.” (hyperbole)
- “The city at night was busy and bright.” (metaphor)
- “We need more workers on this project.” (synecdoche)
Show sample answers for Part B
- “I could sleep for a week.”
- “The city at night was a river of light.”
- “We need more hands on this project.”
Part C (writing). Choose a short poem or song you like. In 60–80 words, name one figure of speech in it, quote the words and explain its effect using the three-step frame. Check your paragraph with our AI Writing Feedback tool.
Quiz: Test Yourself
- What is a figure of speech?
- What is the difference between a trope and a scheme?
- “The old printer groaned and gave up.” Which figure is this?
- Which sentence is a simile?
- Which is the correct plural?
- A friend says, “My boss will kill me.” You reply, “Relax, it’s just a figure of speech.” What do you mean?
- “City Hall says no to the new stadium.” What does City Hall stand for?
- Which word sounds like its meaning?
- In an essay, what matters most when you discuss a figure of speech?
- Is “break the ice” usually called an idiom or a fresh figure of speech?
Key Takeaways
- Figures of speech use words non-literally or in noticeable patterns.
- Tropes change meaning (metaphor, metonymy, irony); schemes change form (alliteration, anaphora, antithesis).
- Ask “Could this be true word for word?” to separate literal from figurative.
- In essays, name the figure, quote it and explain its effect.
- The plural is figures of speech.
To go deeper, start with balance and contrast in our lesson on antithesis, or see how one word can stand for a whole institution in metonymy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are figures of speech in simple words?
Figures of speech are ways of using words that go beyond their plain meaning or arrange them in a striking pattern. “I’m drowning in emails” is one: nobody is in water, but the picture shows how overwhelmed the speaker feels.
What are the main types of figures of speech?
Most are either tropes or schemes. Tropes change what words mean (metaphor, simile, metonymy, hyperbole, irony). Schemes change how words are arranged or how they sound (alliteration, anaphora, antithesis, chiasmus).
What does “it’s just a figure of speech” mean?
It means “don’t take my words literally.” People say it after using an exaggeration or an image, for example when a friend worries after hearing “My boss will kill me if I’m late.”
What is the plural of figure of speech?
The plural is figures of speech. The main noun, figure, takes the -s. “Figure of speeches” is a common mistake.
Is an idiom a figure of speech?
Many idioms began as figures of speech that became fixed. “Break the ice” was once a fresh metaphor. Today it is a ready-made phrase whose meaning you must learn, so it is usually called an idiom.
How do I write about a figure of speech in an essay?
Name the figure, quote the words, then explain the effect. For example: “The writer uses a metaphor, ‘a sea of paperwork,’ to suggest that the character feels overwhelmed.” The effect matters more than the label.
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