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Figures of Speech
New Syllabus 2025, MDCAT
1
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Examples:
1
...
2
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3
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Literary Examples:
From "The City Never Sleeps" (common phrase, often attributed to Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York": "The
city never sleeps
...
)
2
...
Examples:
1
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Deafening silence
3
...
Euphemism
Definition: A mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when
referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing
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"Passed away" instead of "died
...
"Let go" or "downsized" instead of "fired
...
D
...
"
(Holden uses "flunked out" as a milder way to say he was expelled
...
Epigram
Definition: A concise, witty, and often paradoxical remark or saying, typically expressing an observation or truth
...
Examples:
1
...
" (John F
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"No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend
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"I can resist everything except temptation
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Apostrophe
Definition: A rhetorical device in which a speaker directly addresses an absent person, an abstract quality, or a nonhuman entity as if it were capable of understanding
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"Oh, Death, be not proud, though some have called thee mighty and dreadful
...
"Come, gentle night, and give me my Romeo
...
)
6
...
g
...
Examples:
1
...
2
...
3
...
Literary Examples:
From "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe:
"And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me—filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;"
(The word "rustling" imitates the sound of the curtains
...
Allusion
Definition: An indirect or passing reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, cultural, literary, or
political significance
...
Examples:
"This place is like the Garden of Eden
...
Alfred Prufrock by T
...
Eliot:
"No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be;
Am an attendant lord, one that will do
To swell a progress, start a scene or two,"
(Prufrock's comparison of himself to Prince Hamlet is an allusion to Shakespeare's play
...
Irony
Definition: A literary device where the intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words, or
where there is a contradiction between what is expected and what actually happens
...
Situational Irony: When the outcome of a situation is contrary to what was expected
...
Examples:
1
...
" (When it is quite stormy outside
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Situational Irony: A fire station burns down
...
Dramatic Irony: In a horror movie, the audience knows the killer is in the house, but the character walks in
obliviously
...
Henry (Situational Irony):
Della sells her beautiful hair to buy a watch chain for Jim's prized watch, while Jim sells his watch to buy combs
for Della's beautiful hair
...
9
...
Examples:
1
...
I have a dream today!" (Martin Luther King Jr
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"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness
...
:
"Let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire
...
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania
...
)
From The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe:
''Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door—
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;—
This it is and nothing more
...
)
10
...
Examples:
1
...
" (Hands refers to the entire crew
...
"He bought a new set of wheels
...
)
3
...
" (Crown refers to the monarchy
...
"
(Antony asks for their attention, not literally their ears
...
Imagery
Definition: The use of vivid and descriptive language to create mental images in the reader's mind, appealing to the
five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch)
...
The crisp, white snow crunched under his boots
...
The sweet scent of jasmine filled the evening air
...
The sour lemon puckered her lips
...
"
(Keats uses a rich array of sensory details – "soft incense," "sweet," "white hawthorn," "murmurous haunt of flies" –
to create a full sensory experience
...
Symbolism
Definition: The use of objects, people, or ideas to represent something else, often a deeper, abstract idea or quality
...
A dove symbolizes peace
...
A red rose symbolizes love or passion
...
A broken mirror symbolizes bad luck
...
H
...
13
...
Unlike an oxymoron, a paradox is a statement or concept, not just two words
...
"
1
...
" (Socrates)
2
...
" (If true, it's false, and if false, it's true
...
"
(Hamlet's actions, while seemingly cruel, are intended to ultimately bring about a better outcome for Gertrude,
making the statement paradoxically true
...
Metonymy
Definition: A figure of speech in which a thing or concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated
with that thing or concept, rather than by its own name
...
Examples:
1
...
" (The Crown refers to the monarchy/royal authority
...
"The White House issued a statement today
...
)
3
...
" (A cup refers to the contents of the cup, like coffee or tea
...
"
("Days" here stands for life or a period of time spent in labor
...
Satire
Definition: The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices,
particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues
...
Examples:
1
...
2
...
3
...
Literary Examples:
From Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift:
Swift uses Gulliver's encounters with the tiny Lilliputians and the giant Brobdingnagians, among others, to satirize
human nature, political systems, and the follies of European society, particularly those of England
...
Litotes
Definition: An understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by the negation of its opposite
...
Examples:
1
...
" (Meaning it's very good
...
"He's no fool
...
)
3
...
" (Meaning it's very common
...
"
(Meaning the sword was extremely useful or effective
...
Zeugma
Definition: A figure of speech in which a single word, usually a verb or an adjective, applies to two or more other
words in a sentence, and typically in different senses or with different meanings
...
Examples:
1
...
" (The verb "broke" applies differently to "car" and "heart
...
"He lost his keys and his temper
...
"They covered themselves with dust and glory
...
"
(The verb "held" applies literally to "the door" and idiomatically to "his breath
...
Antithesis
Definition: A rhetorical device in which two opposite ideas are put together in a sentence to achieve a contrasting
effect
...
Examples:
1
...
"
2
...
"
3
...
"
Literary Examples:
From Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare:
"Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more
...
)
19
...
It usually refers to a
statement that seems to contradict itself or makes an assertion by negating its opposite, often with an ironic or
understated effect
...
Given its less formal status, I'll provide examples that fit the spirit of a "contrary statement" or
"statement by negation
...
"It's not exactly a walk in the park
...
)
2
...
" (Meaning he is unintelligent
...
"That's not going to happen anytime soon
...
)
Literary Examples:
From a common saying (reflecting the "antistatement" idea):
"He's no angel
...
)
20
...
It is
used to create a musical effect, emphasize certain words, or enhance the rhythm of writing
...
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers
...
Windy winter weather
...
"
(The repetition of 'n', 's', 't', and 'r' sounds creates a haunting, rhythmic effect
...
"
(The 'f' sound is repeated, contributing to the eerie and deceptive atmosphere
...
Assonance
Definition: The repetition of vowel sounds within words that are close together, but the words' consonant sounds
are different
...
Examples:
1
...
(Repetition of the long 'i' sound)
2
...
(Repetition of the long 'o' sound)
3
...
(Repetition of the long 'e' sound)
Literary Examples:
From "The Bells" by Edgar Allan Poe:
"Hear the mellow wedding bells,
Golden bells!
What a world of happiness their harmony foretells!"
(The repetition of the 'e' sound in "bells," "mellow," "tells" and the 'o' sound in "golden," "foretells" is prominent
...
"
(The repeated long 'e' sound and other vowel sounds create a flowing, melancholic tone
...
Metaphor
Definition: A figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things by stating that one is the other, without using
"like" or "as
...
Examples:
1
...
(Comparing a classroom to a zoo to suggest chaos)
2
...
(Comparing a smile to the sun to suggest warmth and brightness)
3
...
(Comparing life to a journey)
Literary Examples:
From Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare:
"Juliet is the sun
...
)
From "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost:
"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and sorry I could not travel both
...
)
23
...
" It highlights a specific
similarity between the two things, making the description more vivid and understandable
...
He is as strong as an ox
...
Her voice was like music to his ears
...
The clouds looked like fluffy cotton balls
...
")
From ―The Odyssey‖ by Homer (translated by Robert Fagles):
"Then he went to bed, a long sleep, like death itself,
and woke to a morning of mist and rain
...
)
EXERCISE:
Choose the correct figure of speech for each question
...
"He's a shining light in a dark room
...
"The world is a stage
...
"The buzzing bee flew away
...
"I'm so hungry I could eat a whole elephant
...
"The wind whispered secrets in my ear
...
"The pen is mightier than the sword
...
"I'm reading a book about anti-gravity
...
"
Which figure of speech is used here?
A) Pun
B) Hyperbole
C) Metaphor
D) Simile
8
...
"
Which figure of speech is used here?
A) Metonymy
B) Synecdoche
C) Personification
D) Hyperbole
9
...
"All hands on deck
...
A) Metaphor
2
...
B) Onomatopoeia
4
...
A) Personification
6
...
A) Pun
8
...
A) Oxymoron
10