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LITERARY DEVICES

(Figurative Language & Idiomatic Expressions)


by: Anthony Laurea (Duenas GCHS)
1. She wrote a FIRST-RATE report. Which word describes the report?
A. mediocre B. run-of-the-mill
C. excellent D. ordinary
2. According to Christian beliefs, December 25 is a RED-LETTER DAY. This expression is
considered a/an .
A. synonym B. idiom
C. simile D. metaphor
4. She was excused because all she said were white lies. This idiomatic expression means

A. lies recited are excusable.


B. she recited the lies in public.
C. the lies are written in white pages.
D. the lies are really harmless.
5. Jestoni graduates in a basketball game. This means that he
A. committed five fouls.
B. is transferred to another team.
C. finished his career in basketball game.
D. is given an award for playing the game well.
6. Grace had a false start. This idiom means that in the race Grace
A. refused to start.
B. started at the finish line.
C. made a wrong beginning.
D. started before the signal to begin.
7. Norman says that he will join in the 100-meter butterfly. He is probably talking about

A. bowling B. swimming
C. boxing D. surfing

8. If Jesson earned his blackbelt, he has been


A. playing table tennis. B. at his karate class.
C. playing volleyball. D. at his gymnastics class.
9. The statement Getting away from the pact means
A. Adding sensationalism.
B. Using hard-nosed questions.
C. Striving hard to get a different story.
D. Waiting for the reporters to do the task.
10. The idiom under the counter means
A. illegal B. secretly
C. discretely D. exclusive
11. A HIGH-MINDED person wouldnt lie. What does HIGH-MINDED mean?
A. unprincipled B. mean
C. corrupt D. honorable
12. Stop shilly shallying make up your mind. This serves as a warning not to _____.
A. continue B. go ahead
C. decide D. hesitate
13. What is meant by LAST DITCH in this sentence? The aged bishop was prepared to fight
to the last ditch to defend his good name.
A. Ones last strategy B. Ones last courage
C. Ones last hope D. Ones last defense
14. What is meant by the expression TO GET BLOOD OUT OF A STONE in this sentence?
Reynaldo has owed me fifty thousand pesos for a year now. Ive asked him for it on several
occasions, but its like trying to get blood out of a stone.
A. Something is impossible
B. Someone wants revenge
C. Someone refuses to cooperate
D. Someone is willing to give what is asked
15. What is meant by TWO PINS in this sentence? For two pins I could have hit him on the
nose.

A. Have a second alternative choice


B. A second course of action
C. Without much persuading
D. The second chance
16. What is meant by AT SIXES AND SEVENS in this sentence? We moved into the house
last week, but Im afraid everything is still a sixes and sevens.
A. The things have not been shipped
B. The boxes are still intact
C. In a state of confusion
D. In an orderly manner
17. What is meant by SOFT OPTION in this sentence? Boots realized that if she stayed in
her present job it would mean competing with an envious rival. Leaving the company would
probably be a soft option.
A. An action that is weakly funded
B. An action that is difficult to take
C. An action that is not agreeable
D. An action that is easier
18. News travels as fast as the wind. This line is a/an ..
A. simile B. metaphor
C. antithesis D. irony
19. She transformed a dragon into a pinworm is an example of
A. hyperbole B. metaphor
C. simile D. alliteration
20. The statement She is a rose is an example of a/an
A. metaphor B. simile
C. hyperbole D. onomatopoeia
21. Which of the following lines is a simile?
A.Holding wonder like a cup
B.Eyes that love you, arms that held
C.Life has loneliness to sell
D.Buy it and never count the cost

22. Jose Garcia Villa, a Filipino prolific writer, once said, Be beautiful, noble, like the
antique ant. What figure of speech did he use?
A. Metaphor B. Simile
C. Personification D. Hyperbole
23. What figure of speech is visible in the following lines?
Clap your hand, you rivers;
You hills, sing together with joy before the Lord
Because he comes to rule the earth. (The Book of Psalm)
A. Allusion B. Metaphor
C. Synecdoche D. Personification
24. What figure of speech is illustrated in the poem of R. Zulueta da Costa entitled Like the
Molave?
Not yet, Rizal, not yet.
The glory hour will come,
Out of the silent dreaming,
From the seven thousand-fold silence,
We shall emerge, saying: We are FILIPINOS!
A. Apostrophe B. Metonymy
C. Alliteration D. Onomatopoeia
25. What figure of speech is used in the lines of Stephen Crane?
The shutters of the tall building were closed like grim lips.
A. Simile B. Metaphor
C. Personification D. Assonance
26. What figure of speech appears in the situation that follows?
There was a time however when the lanzones was not considered edible because people
thought it to be poisonous. How then, did its succulent flesh become sweet and edible, and
has become a favorite of many people?

A. Allusion B. Irony
C. Onomatopoeia D. Allegory
27. What figurative language is used in this line?
One of the seven islets of Batanes is Amianan, which is within kissing distance of Formosa
in Taiwan.
A. Metaphor B. Personification
C. Simile D. Irony
28. What figure of speech is expressed in this line?
Rain runs off over the ground.
A. Personification B. Hyperbole
C. Metaphor D. Simile

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