What Is Figurative Language?

Figurative language is a word or phrase that does not have a literal meaning. It is used by an author for the sake of comparison or dramatic effect. Some examples of figurative language include personification, hyperbole, simile, metaphor, idiom and onomatopoeia.

When teaching figurative language, it can often be challenging to locate age-appropriate examples to use with our students! This teaching presentation will teach your students how the author’s use of figurative language achieves a specific purpose using child-friendly, age-appropriate examples.

Figurative Language Examples and Activities

This comprehensive teaching presentation describes each type of figurative language and gives an example for the students to study. The PowerPoint offers built-in check-for-understanding slides, making it easy to see which students need extra support while keeping your students engaged throughout the presentation. It also ends with a link to a figurative language activity, allowing your students to put their learning into action!

The types of figurative language taught in this PowerPoint include:

• personification
• hyperbole
• simile
• metaphor
• idiom
• onomatopoeia.

More Great Resources for Exploring Figurative Language

Use the Download button to access the Microsoft PowerPoint teaching presentation.

This resource has been designed to be used with our Figurative Language Worksheet and Figurative Language Sorting Activity. Links to these resources can also be found within the presentation.

This resource was created by Meagan Lee, a Teach Starter collaborator.