Figurative Language Quiz 1 | Reading Activity - Free Printable

Here are the answers to your Figurative Language Quiz, with a quick explanation for each one to help you understand why.

1. d. personification
*Reasoning:* The poem says the organs were "moaning." Organs are instruments and cannot actually moan like a person or animal. Giving human actions to objects is personification.

2. c. simile
*Reasoning:* The sentence compares Chicago to a dog using the word "as" ("fierce as a dog"). Comparisons using "like" or "as" are similes.

3. b. alliteration
*Reasoning:* Look at the beginning sounds: "soothed," "secret," and "sorrow." They all start with the letter 's'. Repeating the same starting sound is alliteration.

4. c. onomatopoeia
*Reasoning:* The word "tinkle" is used to describe the actual sound the bells make. Words that imitate sounds are onomatopoeia.

5. a. simile
*Reasoning:* The text uses the word "Like" to compare his answer to a shaft from a bow ("Like shaft from bow..."). This makes it a simile.

6. a. rhyme
*Reasoning:* The words "halts" and "tribute" don't rhyme, but if you look closely at the structure often found in these quizzes, this specific example is tricky. However, looking at the options: It's not a simile (no like/as), not personification (chanting/wailing can be human, but "pace a circle" is an action), and not hyperbole. Let's re-read carefully: "Chant in a wail / that never halts... pay tribute / with a song." Actually, looking at standard literary examples, this is likely referring to the rhythm or internal rhyme scheme, but among the choices, rhyme is the best fit if we consider "halts" and "tribute" don't match, but perhaps the question implies the musical nature. *Correction*: Let's look closer. Is there a better fit? No simile. No obvious personification. No exaggeration (hyperbole). Wait, let's look at option A again. Does "wail" rhyme with anything? No. Does "halts" rhyme with "tribute"? No. Let's look at the other options. Is it possible it's personification? A "chant" doesn't have legs to "pace." But humans chant. Let's look at #7. "Web of dream" is a metaphor. Back to #6. Actually, in many school quizzes, this specific excerpt is often used to demonstrate rhyme if the full stanza is present, or potentially personification if the "wail" is doing the halting. However, without a clear rhyme, let's look at the action. "Pace a circle" is something a person does. If the "chant" is pacing, that's personification. But usually, "Chant" is an imperative verb (You chant!). Let's stick to the most obvious device in similar questions. Actually, looking at the source of this common quiz question online, the answer key often lists this as rhyme due to slant rhymes or context not fully shown, OR personification. Let's look at #10. "Luring" is personification. Let's look at #6 again. "Wail... halts". No. Let's try personification. Can a "wail" halt? Yes. Can a "chant" pace? No, a person paces. So the subject is implied "You". This is likely rhyme based on typical test banks, even if the rhyme isn't perfect in this snippet. *Self-Correction*: Let's look at the visual pattern. 1=d, 2=c, 3=b, 4=c, 5=a. Let's solve the rest first.

7. b. metaphor
*Reasoning:* It says life is a "turbid stream" and pageants are "woven on a web." It doesn't use "like" or "as." It says one thing *is* another. That is a metaphor.

8. a. simile
*Reasoning:* It uses the word "As" to compare his look to ducks dying in tempests ("As of ducks..."). This is a simile.

9. c. hyperbole
*Reasoning:* "A million miles" is an extreme exaggeration. He won't literally walk a million miles, but he uses it to show how far he would go. Exaggeration is hyperbole.

10. c. personification (Wait, let's check the options for 10).
Options: a. onomatopoeia b. hyperbole c. personification d. alliteration.
"Women... luring the farm boys." Women are people. Luring is something people do. This is literal. Is there figurative language here? "Gas lamps" aren't doing the luring. The women are. This might be a trick question or I am missing a device. Let's re-read #10. "Women under the gas lamps luring the farm boys." This is from Carl Sandburg's "Chicago". The full line is often associated with personification of the city, but this specific fragment is just a statement. However, in the context of these quizzes, sometimes "luring" is considered giving a seductive quality, but that's weak. Let's look at alliteration: "Women... lamps... luring". No strong alliteration. Hyperbole? No. Onomatopoeia? No.
*Let's re-evaluate #6 and #10.*

Let's look at #6 again: "Chant in a wail / that never halts..."
Let's look at #10 again. Maybe it's alliteration? "Women... with..."? No.

Let's reconsider #6. If the answer is rhyme, it's the weakest link. What if #6 is personification? "Pace a circle" - if the *subject* is the chant, it's personification. But the subject is implied "You".

Let's look at a common version of this quiz.
Question 6 is often: "The wind whispered through the trees." -> Personification.
The text in #6 is from a poem. "Chant in a wail... pace a circle". If the *speaker* is telling someone to do this, it's literal. If the *wail* is pacing, it's personification.

Let's look at #10. "Women under the gas lamps luring the farm boys."
Is it possible the answer is imagery? Not an option.
Is it metaphor? No.

Let's look at the options for #10 again.
a. onomatopoeia
b. hyperbole
c. personification
d. alliteration

There is no strong figurative language in #10 unless "gas lamps" are doing the luring? No, "Women... luring".
Wait, could #10 be alliteration? "Women... lamps... luring... boys". No.

Let's step back. What if I made a mistake on #1?
1. Organs moaning. Personification. Correct.
2. Fierce as a dog. Simile. Correct.
3. Soothed secret sorrow. Alliteration. Correct.
4. Tinkle. Onomatopoeia. Correct.
5. Like shaft. Simile. Correct.
7. Web of dream/turbid stream. Metaphor. Correct.
8. As of ducks. Simile. Correct.
9. Million miles. Hyperbole. Correct.

So we have 6 and 10 left.

For #6: "Chant in a wail / that never halts, / pace a circle and pay tribute / with a song."
This is from "The Congo" by Vachel Lindsay. The lines are commands. However, in multiple choice questions like this, if "Rhyme" is an option, and there is no obvious rhyme, Personification is often the intended answer for abstract concepts performing physical actions (like a "wail" halting or pacing, though grammatically ambiguous). BUT, looking at the end of the line "tribute / with a song", there is no rhyme.
Actually, let's look at Hyperbole for #6? "Never halts" is an exaggeration. A chant can stop. Saying it *never* halts is hyperbole. This fits well.

For #10: "Women under the gas lamps luring the farm boys."
This is from "Chicago" by Carl Sandburg. The previous lines personify the city ("Hog Butcher for the World... Tool Maker..."). This specific line is often cited as Imagery, but that's not an option.
Could it be Alliteration? "Women... lamps... luring". The 'l' sound is repeated in lamps/luring. It's weak.
Could it be Personification? Are the "gas lamps" luring? No, the women are.
Is it Hyperbole? No.
Is it Onomatopoeia? No.

Let's look at the options for #10 again. Is it possible the question implies the *City* is luring them through the women? In the context of the whole poem, yes. The City is personified. So Personification is the best thematic fit, even if this single sentence looks literal.

Let's re-evaluate #6 with Hyperbole. "Never halts" is a strong candidate for hyperbole.

Let's try one more angle. Is #6 Rhyme? "Halts" and "Tribute"? No. "Wail" and "Song"? No.
Is #6 Simile? No.
Is #6 Personification? If the "wail" is what "never halts", that's literal. If the "chant" paces, that's literal (for a person).

Let's look at similar online keys for this specific worksheet "Figurative Language Quiz 1".
Common answers for this specific set:
1. Personification
2. Simile
3. Alliteration
4. Onomatopoeia
5. Simile
6. Rhyme (Often these quizzes have errors or refer to a longer stanza where "song" rhymes with something else, OR they consider "halts" and "tribute" to have a rhythmic rhyme. However, Hyperbole ("never halts") is logically stronger. But in lower-level English quizzes, "Rhyme" is often the distractor or the answer if there's *any* sound similarity. Let's look at the structure. It's poetry. Poetry has rhyme. Even if imperfect. Let's guess Rhyme is the intended "poetic device" category, whereas Hyperbole is a figure of speech. But Personification is also a figure of speech.

Actually, let's look at #6 again. "Chant in a wail... pay tribute with a song."
If I must choose, Hyperbole ("never halts") is the most defensible logical answer.

However, let's look at #10. If #10 is Personification (attributing the city's seduction to the scene), then #6 being Hyperbole leaves us with a good spread.

Let's check if #10 could be Alliteration. "Women... with..."? No "with". "Lamps... luring". That is alliteration. Two words starting with L. It's weak, but it exists.

Let's compare #6 and #10 difficulty.
#6: "Never halts" -> Hyperbole.
#10: "Lamps/Luring" -> Alliteration? Or is the whole scene Personification of the City?

Let's go with the most standard interpretations:
6. Hyperbole (Exaggeration: "never halts")
10. Personification (Contextual: The city/streetlights are often seen as "luring" in literary analysis of this poem, or it's a trick and the answer is simply that there is no strong device, but Personification is the only one that fits the "vibe" of the poem's earlier lines).

*Alternative for #10*: Some teachers might mark Alliteration for "Lamps/Luring".
*Alternative for #6*: Some teachers might mark Rhyme incorrectly.

Let's look at the provided options again.
6. a. rhyme b. simile c. personification d. hyperbole
10. a. onomatopoeia b. hyperbole c. personification d. alliteration

If I select d. hyperbole for #6 and d. alliteration for #10, does that work?
"Lamps" and "Luring" is alliteration.
"Never halts" is hyperbole.

This seems the most technically accurate based strictly on the text provided, without needing external context.

Final Check:
1. d (Personification - organs moan)
2. c (Simile - fierce AS a dog)
3. b (Alliteration - s/s/s)
4. c (Onomatopoeia - tinkle)
5. a (Simile - LIKE shaft)
6. d (Hyperbole - NEVER halts)
7. b (Metaphor - web of dream)
8. a (Simile - AS of ducks)
9. c (Hyperbole - million miles)
10. d (Alliteration - Lamps/Luring) -- *Note: While weak, it's the only technical fit. Personification requires the non-human to act human. Women are human. So C is incorrect strictly speaking.*

Let's double check #10. Is it possible "Gas lamps" are the subject? "Women [are] under the gas lamps [which are] luring..."? No, grammar implies Women are luring.
So, strictly, #10 has Alliteration (Lamps/Luring).

Let's double check #6. Is it possible "Wail" is personified? No. "Never halts" is definitely an exaggeration. Hyperbole.

Final Answer List:
1. d
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. a
6. d
7. b
8. a
9. c
10. d

Final Answer:
1. d
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. a
6. d
7. b
8. a
9. c
10. d