When Covid-19 started in the United States, we had to learn the jargon and words experts used, such as outbreak, quarantine, symptom, contact tracing, contagion, asymptomatic, and vaccine, to describe and explain the pandemic. Equally, to explain or describe and better interpret literary works, including books, we need to learn the jargon, literary terms, or figurative languages such as metaphor, irony, and smile, among a host of others.

Since the Modern Book Club is in the business of recommending acclaimed books for its members to read, it will be essential to define the most frequently used literary terms for our members so that they can be able to explain and describe more insightfully what they read during book club meetings. Here are a few of the literary terms they need to know.

We use a figure of speech when we intentionally say or write outside the boundary of ordinary grammatical usage or meaning. “Break a leg,” “my lover has a heart of gold,” and “love is a battlefield” are examples of figurative speech.

We use allegory to interpret or reveal the hidden meaning of a story, poem, or picture. Typically, an allegorical story is supposed to represent a deeper meaning. “The lack of access to libraries and educated parents is the leading cause of the inability of poor and colored American kids to read.”

Mainly used for emphasis, alliteration is the use of the same letter at the beginning of words to repeat the same sound effects in a sentence. Examples include “do or die,” “win without war,” “love’s labor lost,” and “Fast and furious.”

Anthropomorphism means the representation of objects as having human form. “The study results suggest” your cat wants to celebrate his birthday,” and “the study concluded” are a few examples.

We use hyperbole when we speak and write to exaggerate or overstate something extravagantly.

“I’m so hungry that I could eat a horse,” “that purse looks like it cost a million dollars,” and “

I’m so tired that I could sleep for a week,” are hyperbolic statements.

An irony expresses something contrary to the intended meaning. We say one thing but mean another. “Those who should benefit from the new tax system will pay more” and “the mistake will improve the team's situation” are examples of irony.

A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two unrelated or different things. These two things must be similar or have one thing in common.

"The mind is an ocean,” "the city is a jungle,” “all the world's a stage,” and “the city was a beacon of light” are examples of a metaphor.

Metonymy refers to using a word that describes one of its qualities or features. “The White House” (the president’s administration), “Silicon Valley” (referring to the global center for high technology and innovation), “the Pentagon” (the headquarters of the department of defense), and "the Crown”(describing a monarch) are examples of metonymy.

Onomatopoeia is the use of words that imitate the sound they denote. “Boom!”, “Bang!”, “ Crash!” “Buzz" and "zip" Are examples.

We use oxymoron when two words or phrases are used together that have or seem to have opposite meanings: “My recent trip to Morocco was very much a working holiday,” “old news,” “deafening silence,” and “parting is such sweet sorrow” are examples of an oxymoron.

A paradox is a noun that means a statement that contradicts itself because it contains two opposite facts or characteristics: “Jumbo Shrimp,” “a little big man,” and “ less is more.”

When a writer gives human qualities to an abstract idea, thing, or tree, that’s the personification. “The sea is angry” is an example of personification.

A pun is a joke or humor play on words with similar sounds but different meanings, such as “her cat is near the computer to monitor the mouse.” “My librarian is a great bookkeeper.”

When we express comparison or resemblance of two things by using “like” or “as,” we use a simile. “My room was chilly as ice.” “My Hat looks like the fruit of a basket.” “He seems like a peddler.” “Its fleece was white as snow.” “He is wily as a fox.”

Sarcasm is a noun that means the witty language used to convey insults or scorn. You could scorn a dummy as "Oh, you're soooo clever!"

Synecdoche is a figure of speech in which a part of something is used to signify the whole or vice versa. “I need a pair of hands” (referring to workers), “asking for her hand in marriage,” my parents bought me a new set of wheels (referring to the whole vehicle)

A zeugma is a literary term for using one word to modify two other words in two different ways. An example of a zeugma is, “She broke his car and his heart.”

Definition of Hyperbole. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from http://literarydevices.net/hyperbole/

Fass, D. (1988). Metonymy and metaphor: what's the difference? Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from https://aclweb.org/anthology/c88-1036

Feminism in the United States. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 2, 2022, from Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminism_in_the_United_States

Metonymy - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from Merriam-webster.com: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metonymy

Oxymoron. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxymoron

Paradox. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradox

Personification. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personification

Pun. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pun

Rhetorical Figures in Sound: Alliteration. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 3, 2022, from https://www.americanrhetoric.com/figures/alliteration.htm

Synecdoche Examples from Everyday Life. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from http://literarydevices.net/synecdoche/

Zeugma. (n.d.). Retrieved 8 1, 2022, from https://literarydevices.net/zeugma/