Figurative language is a way of saying something that is different from a literal expression. Thus if you were to say, "He eats like a horse," you would not mean that he literally eats like a horse. You are using a FIGURATIVE way of expressing your idea. It's emphatic. It's an attention grabber. It's different. People listen. There are many ways to express yourself figuratively in language. The following methods are among the most common:

 

Simile
Metaphor
Metonymy
Synecdoche
Hyperbole
Apostrophe
Zeugma
Chiasmus




Poet Jim Morrison's grave in Pere Lachaise cemetery, Paris.


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