Literary Term: Figurative Language
Name ____________________________________________________________________
Authors use figurative language to make the story more interesting to the reader. There are typically
three types of figurative language used in literature.
Simile: Uses “like” or “as” to compare two things.
Metaphor: Describes something as if it were another unlike thing.
Personification: Gives human qualities to something that is not human.
Read the sentences below from Dicey’s Song. Write what type of figurative language is used and a
description of how you knew.
“You never knew where a road would end, Dicey thought, the breeze curling around her ears,
you just knew that roads ended.”
“…happiness blew through her like wind, buoyed her up like water, and she wanted to float
along on it.”
“Their leaves drooped down, dispirited by the heat, and hung there. Like dog’s tongues.”
“The wind had gotten colder, like knives with edges.”
“James said you’re crazy like a fox.”
“I told him that you’re pretty strong meat.”
Find three other examples of figurative language from the novel. Below, write the quote along with its
specific type of figurative language.
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Dicey’s Song
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Permission to Reproduce for One Teacher’s Use