Literary Device Worksheet

No . Device Definition Example

1 Onomatopoeia The formation of a word from a "Buzz" of bees, "hiss"

sound associated with what is of a snake
named or a word that imitates the
sound it represents.

2 Oxymoron A figure of speech in which two "bittersweet"

contradictory terms are combined
to create a paradoxical effect.

3 Metaphor A figure of speech that makes a "Her eyes were stars,

comparison between two unlike guiding him through
things, without using "like" or the darkness."
"as".

4 Verbal Irony When a speaker says something Saying "What a

contradictory to what they mean, beautiful day!" during a
often with sarcasm or mockery. thunderstorm.

5 Situational Irony When there is a contrast between A fire station burns

what is expected to happen and down.
what actually happens in a
situation.

6 Dramatic Irony When the audience knows In a horror movie, the

something that the characters do audience knows the
not, leading to misunderstandings killer is hiding, but the
or tension. characters do not.

7 Personification Giving human qualities or “The leaves danced in

attributes to something the wind.”
non-human.

8 Rhetorical Question A question asked solely to "Who knows?"

produce an effect or to make an
assertion and not to elicit a reply.

9 Connotation The emotional or cultural The word “snake”

associations surrounding a word, really means a long,
as opposed to its literal meaning legless reptile.
(denotation). However, its
connotation often
carries negative
associations such as
deceitfulness or danger.
10 Denotation The literal or primary meaning of The denotation of
a word, in contrast to the feelings "home" is a place
or ideas that the word suggests. where one lives.