Figurative Language 2
1. Antanaclasis – A word is repeated in two different senses.
Paronomasia or punning – Words sound alike but are different in meaning.
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Examples:
Which do you want: culled cash, cold cash, or gold cache?
In a Catholic school, they teach you your writes, our rights, and their rites.
Face a book, not Facebook!
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Syllepsis or zeugma – A word is used differently in relation to two or more words that it modifies. The word is used in two or more senses.
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Examples:
If you’re going to do something wrong, do it right!
She was exempted from labor because she was laboring.
We should lock arms not aim arms at each other.
Get someone who passed the bar or you’ll end up behind it.
Lies made him lie eternally.
My grades in English and my hopes are both sinking.
Give me the set before I set your house on fire!
A banana is better than you; a banana has a heart, you have none!
Are you getting fit, or having one? (from M*A*S*H)
“My teeth and ambitions are bared; be prepared!” (Scar, The Lion King)
We must hang all together or assuredly we will all hang separately.
I’m giving you the right to execute your laws or your citizens.
You are a thief: you stole my money and you stole my heart.
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2. Onomatopoeia – The word’s sound corresponds to its semantic value.
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Examples:
Pop! went my balloon.
The plane landed with a thud.
The car screeched to a stop.
The party was interrupted by the boom of thunder.
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3. Anthimeria – A word is substituted with another part of speech of which it is connected.
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Examples:
The thunder would not peace at my bidding.
Peace, a noun, substituted for stop, a verb.
I am going in search of the great perhaps. (Rabelais)
Perhaps, an adverb, substituted for question, a noun.
Every why hath a wherefore.
Why substituted for question, wherefore substituted for answer.
The singer danced his can’t and sang his can.
Can’t substituted for something that the singer cannot do; can substituted for something she can do.
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4. Oxymoron – It is a figure of speech that combines naturally contradictory terms. Oxymora are often in adjective-noun combinations although verb-noun combinations exist. Many oxymora begin as inadvertent errors, puns, or paradoxes (a statement that that seems to contradict reality or itself but maybe true.)
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Examples:
I can’t stand this deafening silence!
The Earth silently screams against the transgressions of Man.
His boyfriend was extremely average in all respects.
Loneliness made her lose her senses: she breathed solid air, heard silent songs, saw colorless rainbows, lit frozen fires, savored bitter sugar, and walked under a frosty sun.
Language barriers made her alone in the crowded streets of Tokyo.
Sir Ernie turns jokes seriously; only a few people realize his punch lines.
The class is in static dynamism; everyone’s moving but there’s no improvement.
I like the brand new old you.
Everything he told you were true lies.
The boys love to have a gentle brawl.
Keeping her façade of innocence, she sent her ex-boyfriend’s scandalous videotapes accidentally on purpose.
The movie was horrifyingly good.
She was terribly fantastic.
Farting is such a sweet sorrow.
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5. Litotes – An understatement used deliberately; it is expressed by denying its opposite instead of using the direct word. The good is understated by using roundabout language that emphasizes the lesser synonym. The understatement is thus negative.
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Examples:
I am not unwell.
“Not unwell” means well; the sentence actually meant “I am well.”
This is no ordinary city.
The sentence actually meant “This is a unique or impressive city.”
Your performance was not bad.
The sentence actually meant “Your performance was good.”
She was not thin.
The sentence actually meant “She was fat.”
Our opponent never said an untruth.
The sentence actually meant “Our opponent never lied.”
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6. Meiosis – It understates something or implies that it is lesser in significance or size than it really is. The understatement is positive.
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Examples:
I was a bit hurt when my friend failed to invite me to her birthday.
A dentist administering an oral injection: “An ant’s bite is worse than this.”
A person about to undergo an amputation: “This is just a wound.”
A person suffering from an asthma attack: “Don’t mind me. I’m just catching my breath.”
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7. Irony – This is the use of a word to signify the opposite of what is said. The words used express approval or praise, but the author’s real intention is blame, criticism, scorn or ridicule. An irony is often subtle but should not be understood for what it says by the listener or reader. In writing, the context of an irony holds the clue; and in speech, the tone of the voice or the manner of the speaker indicates than an irony is intended.
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Examples:
It was very nice of you to open my private letter. Thank you very much.
Nothing could make me happier than the red mark on your exam.
I never thought cancer can be so fun!
You have done a very good job forging my signature. Look, no one can notice the difference!
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8. Rhetorical question – It is a question for which we expect no answer, but which we assume the listener will agree with.
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Examples:
A mother admonishing a child: Do you want to stay outside and eat no lunch?
A military general in a traffic altercation: “Do you know who you are talking to?”
A teacher to students: “You are going to study, aren’t you?”
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9. Euphemism – It is the substitution of an agreeable or less offensive expression in place of an offensive one. Euphemisms are usually employed to prevent hurting the receiver’s sensibilities or to keep certain things secret.
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Examples:
The child has a learning disability.
The Nazis executed the Final Solution.
The company rightsized because of the economic recession.
Their terminally sick dog has been put to sleep.
The boys were caught reading adult material in school.
The girl came from an economically-deprived neighborhood.
High-speed cerebral lead implantation may be the solution to your problems.
