Figurative Language Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. Throughout a story, a cracked mirror appears whenever the characters’ trust breaks down. What is the mirror primarily functioning as?
An allusion
A symbol
A euphemism
A pun
2. In the sentence “The approaching deadline was a storm cloud over the team,” which device compares the deadline directly to a storm cloud?
Personification
Hyperbole
Simile
Metaphor
3. A student looks at a crowded inbox and says, “I have a million emails to answer.” Which device is being used?
Euphemism
Symbolism
Hyperbole
Metonymy
4. The statement “The only constant is change” appears contradictory but expresses a meaningful insight. Which device best describes it?
Paradox
Understatement
Euphemism
Oxymoron
5. Which sentence relies most strongly on sensory imagery?
She had learned the recipe from a famous cookbook.
The pie reminded her that family traditions mattered.
Warm cinnamon scented the kitchen as the crust crackled beneath her knife.
Baking the pie took longer than she had planned.
6. Which device is most clearly used in “The wind interrogated every window in the old house”?
Alliteration
Onomatopoeia
Understatement
Personification
7. At the start of a tense meeting, Maya tells a light joke to “break the ice.” What does this idiom mean?
To change a cold or unfriendly meeting location
To interrupt the meeting before it formally begins
To introduce a difficult subject without preparation
To make people feel more relaxed and willing to talk
8. Which device is created by the repeated initial consonant sound in “Wild winds whipped the water”?
Alliteration
Refrain
Onomatopoeia
Assonance
9. A news report states, “The White House announced a new policy,” using the place to refer to the presidential administration. Which device is this?
Personification
Synecdoche
Metonymy
Apostrophe
10. In the line “O Time, slow your flight and let this moment remain,” the speaker directly addresses an abstract idea. Which device is this?
Personification
Apostrophe
Metonymy
Synecdoche
11. After being caught in a sudden downpour without an umbrella, Leo says, “Perfect weather for a walk.” What device does his comment use?
Verbal irony
Dramatic irony
Situational irony
Euphemism
12. A ship’s officer calls, “All hands on deck,” using “hands” to mean sailors. Which device uses a part to represent the whole?
Metonymy
Euphemism
Synecdoche
Paradox
13. Which device appears in the compact pairing “deafening silence”?
Understatement
Oxymoron
Pun
Allusion
14. After seeing that an entire side of his car has been badly crumpled, Noah says, “It has a bit of a dent.” Which device minimizes the extent of the damage?
Hyperbole
Verbal irony
Euphemism
Understatement
15. In “The dropped tray hit the floor with a clang,” what device is demonstrated by the word “clang”?
Assonance
Onomatopoeia
Consonance
Allusion
16. Which sentence contains a simile?
The moon hung like a silver lantern above the field.
The moon watched over the sleeping field.
The moon was a silver lantern above the field.
The brilliant moon flooded the field with light.