Language & Literature · Unit 12
Figurative Language
Similes, metaphors, idioms and sound devices
Figurative language is not decoration added to plain meaning. Much of it is how abstract ideas become sayable at all, and ordinary speech is full of it.
The unit covers simile and metaphor, personification, hyperbole and understatement, idioms, and alliteration and onomatopoeia.
This unit breaks down into 19 short steps and 116 questions, starting at difficulty 2 and building to 4. Below you can see exactly what it covers, how the path is structured, and worked examples with explanations.
- Steps
- 19
- Questions
- 116
- Difficulty
- 2-4
What this unit covers
- Hyperbole and Understatement
- Personification
- Alliteration and Onomatopoeia
- Idioms
- Simile and Metaphor
Where this fits
Follows Poetry. Used constantly in Classic Literature.
Where people slip
A simile states a comparison and a metaphor asserts an identity. The difference is not just the word like - it is how strong the claim is.
How the unit is structured
Figurative Language runs as 19 short steps that unlock in order. 14 are practice rounds and 5 are challenge rounds that pull together everything before them. Questions start at difficulty 2 and climb to 4 as you progress.
Challenge rounds
Example questions
30 real questions from this unit, with the answer and the reason behind it, grouped by what they practise. There are 116 in the unit altogether.
Alliteration and Onomatopoeia
- Build the sentenceLevel 2
1. Build a sentence that uses alliteration.
Answer: Slippery snakes slid silently
Each word here starts with the same 's' sound, which is alliteration.
- Choose all that applyLevel 2
2. Which words are examples of onomatopoeia? Pick all that apply.
- Buzzcorrect
- Table
- Crashcorrect
- Happy
Buzz and crash are words that sound like the noises they describe.
- Odd one outLevel 2
3. Which word is NOT an example of onomatopoeia?
- chaircorrect
- splash
- pop
- buzz
The odd word out does not imitate a sound.
- Fill the blankLevel 3
4. The repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words, as in 'the rain in Spain', is called ____.
- assonancecorrect
- alliteration
- hyperbole
- personification
Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words, distinct from rhyme at line ends.
- Multiple choiceLevel 3
5. What is the repetition of the same consonant sound at the start of nearby words called, as in 'Peter Piper picked'?
- Alliterationcorrect
- Onomatopoeia
- Hyperbole
- Idiom
Alliteration repeats an initial consonant sound across nearby words for a musical effect.
- Picture questionLevel 3
6. 💥 This symbol often represents sound effects in comics, like the word 'boom' printed near an explosion. What sound device gives words like 'boom' their power?
- Onomatopoeiacorrect
- Simile
- Idiom
- Understatement
Onomatopoeia is exactly why comic sound effects like 'boom' or 'pow' feel so vivid.
Hyperbole and Understatement
- Guess the numberLevel 2
7. In the hyperbole 'I've told you a million times', what number is used to exaggerate?
Answer: 1000000 times
The exaggerated number used in this common hyperbole is one million.
- Multiple choiceLevel 2
8. Which sentence is an example of hyperbole?
- I have told you a million times!correct
- I have told you three times.
- I told you once.
- I will tell you again.
Hyperbole is a huge exaggeration not meant to be taken literally.
- Odd one outLevel 2
9. Which sentence is NOT an example of hyperbole?
- The bus arrived five minutes late.correct
- I've waited here for a hundred years.
- This backpack weighs a thousand pounds.
- My feet are killing me after that walk.
This sentence is a simple, literal statement, while the others are clear exaggerations.
- Choose all that applyLevel 3
10. Which of these sentences are examples of hyperbole? Pick all that apply.
- I've told you a thousand times already.correct
- This suitcase weighs a ton.correct
- The suitcase weighs twenty kilograms.
- I told you twice already.
Both sentences use extreme exaggeration for dramatic or comic effect.
- Fill the blankLevel 3
11. Calling a light drizzle 'a bit of weather' when it is actually a hurricane is an example of ____.
- understatementcorrect
- hyperbole
- alliteration
- personification
Understatement deliberately downplays how serious or extreme something actually is.
- Build the sentenceLevel 4
12. Build a hyperbole about being hungry.
Answer: I am so hungry I could eat a horse
Claiming to be hungry enough to eat a horse is an impossible exaggeration, making it hyperbole.
Idioms
- Fact or fibLevel 2
13. The idiom 'once in a blue moon' means something happens very rarely.
Answer: True
This idiom describes an event that occurs infrequently, not an actual blue-colored moon.
- Fill the blankLevel 2
14. 'Once you learn to ride a bike, it's a ____' means the task is very easy.
- piece of cakecorrect
- piece of paper
- long road
- heavy stone
This common idiom means something is extremely easy to do.
- Multiple choiceLevel 2
15. What does the idiom 'break the ice' mean?
- To ease tension and start a conversationcorrect
- To make someone very cold
- To damage frozen water
- To end a friendship suddenly
This idiom means to ease tension or start a conversation in an awkward situation, not to literally break ice.
- Build the sentenceLevel 3
16. Build a sentence using the idiom for facing a difficult task bravely.
Answer: She decided to bite the bullet and apologize
To 'bite the bullet' is an idiom meaning to face a difficult or painful situation with courage.
- Choose all that applyLevel 3
17. Which of these idioms mean 'to reveal something secret'? Pick all that apply.
- Spill the beanscorrect
- Let the cat out of the bagcorrect
- Hit the books
- Break a leg
Both idioms are common ways to say a secret has been revealed.
- Match the pairsLevel 3
18. Match each idiom to what it really means.
Answer: Break the ice = Ease tension in a new situation; Bite the bullet = Face a difficult situation bravely; Spill the beans = Reveal a secret; Hit the sack = Go to bed
Idioms carry a figurative meaning that is different from their literal words.
Personification
- Build the sentenceLevel 2
19. Build a sentence that gives the sun a human action.
Answer: The sun smiled down on the valley
Saying the sun smiled gives it a human feeling and action, which is personification.
- Choose all that applyLevel 2
20. Which sentences use personification? Pick all that apply.
- The leaves danced in the breeze.correct
- The clock ticked loudly.
- The thunder grumbled angrily.correct
- The rain fell softly.
Both sentences give a human action to a non-human thing.
- Fact or fibLevel 2
21. 'The computer refused to start this morning' is an example of personification.
Answer: True
Saying the computer 'refused' gives it a human-like will, so it is personification.
- Fill the blankLevel 2
22. Giving human qualities to an animal or object is called ____.
- personificationcorrect
- hyperbole
- alliteration
- simile
Personification is the technique of describing non-human things as if they can think, feel, or act like people.
- Match the pairsLevel 2
23. Match each personified subject to its human action.
Answer: The thunder = roared angrily; The car engine = coughed and sputtered; The old house = creaked and complained; The waves = raced toward the shore
Each pairing gives a non-human subject a believable human action, forming personification.
- Multiple choiceLevel 4
24. In the line 'Death be not proud', from John Donne's poem, what device treats Death as a person being addressed?
- Personificationcorrect
- Onomatopoeia
- Understatement
- Assonance
Donne personifies and directly addresses Death as though it were a living being.
Simile and Metaphor
- Build the sentenceLevel 2
25. Build a simile comparing bravery to a lion.
Answer: The soldier was as brave as a lion
This sentence uses 'as' to compare the soldier's bravery to a lion, forming a simile.
- Fill the blankLevel 2
26. 'The lake was a sheet of glass' is an example of a ____.
- metaphorcorrect
- simile
- idiom
- onomatopoeia
This sentence directly equates the lake with glass, so it is a metaphor.
- Multiple choiceLevel 2
27. Which sentence uses a metaphor?
- The classroom was a zoo.correct
- The classroom was like a zoo.
- The classroom was as loud as a zoo.
- The classroom felt calm.
A metaphor says one thing IS another, without using 'like' or 'as'.
- Odd one outLevel 2
28. Which sentence is NOT a simile?
- He is a lion in battle.correct
- He fought like a lion.
- He was as brave as a lion.
- He roared like a lion.
The odd one out is a metaphor because it has no 'like' or 'as'.
- Put in orderLevel 2
29. Put these steps for identifying a simile in the correct order.
Answer: Read the sentence -> Look for the word 'like' or 'as' -> Check that two different things are being compared -> Confirm it is a simile
You read the sentence, look for a comparison word, then confirm two things are being compared.
- Choose all that applyLevel 4
30. Which of these sentences use a metaphor? Pick all that apply.
- The world is a stagecorrect
- Her heart is made of stonecorrect
- The dog barked like a machine gun
- The kitchen was as messy as a storm site
Both sentences equate two unlike things directly without 'like' or 'as', which is the mark of a metaphor.
Where these questions come from. Each unit starts as a plan of the concepts it should cover and the difficulty it should span. Questions are written against that plan with AI assistance, then checked by a validator that rejects anything without a single defensible answer, an explanation, or plausible wrong options. How we write questions sets out the whole process, and corrections are fixed in the bank and reach the site and the app the same day.
How you practise
This unit mixes 14 different question formats, so you are recalling and applying rather than recognising the same layout every time.
- Build the sentence
- Choose all that apply
- Fact or fib
- Fill the blank
- Guess the number
- Match the pairs
- Multiple choice
- Odd one out
- Picture question
- Put in order
- Sort into groups
- Spell it
- True or false
- Type the answer
Practise Figurative Language
116 questions across 19 steps. Start with step one and crawl at your own pace.
Play this unitRead about Figurative Language
Explainers from our blog on what this unit covers. Each one ends with real questions from the bank.
- Metaphor vs Simile: The Difference Made SimpleMetaphor vs simile can be easy to mix up. Learn how each comparison works, why writers use them, and how to explain their effect clearly in a text.August 13, 2026 · 5 min read
- What Is Hyperbole? How Exaggeration Creates EmphasisLearn what hyperbole is, how deliberate exaggeration adds emphasis, humour, and emotion, and how to identify its effect in literature and everyday speech.August 17, 2026 · 5 min read
- Personification in Literature: Meaning, Examples, and EffectsPersonification in literature gives human qualities to nonhuman things. Learn how to spot it and explain its effect on mood, imagery, and meaning.August 14, 2026 · 5 min read
- What Is Alliteration? Meaning, Examples, and Literary EffectLearn how repeated starting sounds create rhythm, emphasis, mood, and memorable language in poems, speeches, and stories.August 14, 2026 · 5 min read
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