Focus on Vocabulary: Go Beyond the Literal Meaning
Sometimes writers use words to mean exactly what they say and nothing else. These exact meanings are called literal meanings. Figurative language goes beyond the literal meanings of the words and creates images in the reader’s mind.
| Definitions | Examples | Explanations |
|---|---|---|
| A simile compares two things, usually using like, as, or than. | A spring breeze arrived like a joyful dancer. | The simile compares a spring breeze to a joyful dancer. |
| A metaphor says one thing is another. | A spring breeze was a gift after the long winter. | This metaphor compares a spring breeze to a gift. |
| Personification gives human qualities to things that aren’t human. | A spring breeze smiled on us after the long winter. | A breeze cannot smile; this is a human trait. |
| In an idiom, the words mean something different from their dictionary meanings. | Jon stopped singing when his friends said to cool it. | The literal meaning of cool it is “to make something colder.” The idiom means to stop. |
How the Strategy Works
Use context to help you figure out language that is not literal.
1. Decide whether a literal meaning could be correct.
2. Look at the figurative language to see what is being compared.
3. Think about what the comparison could mean.
4. Decide what feeling or image the writer is trying to create.
Follow the strategy to figure out the meanings of the underlined phrases.
REMEMBER Literal meanings are the exact meanings of words. Figurative language extends beyond the exact meanings of words.