Last Updated on September 29, 2021
Personification is very common in both literature and everyday speech. Just like Simile and Metaphor, most of us have used Personification in our everyday conversations. Consciously or not, it is one of the most commonly used figures of speech that is now entering our everyday vocabulary. Knowing the various Personifications can be helpful, especially for aspirants of competitive examinations like IELTS, GRE, TOEFL, etc.
To help you understand what this literary device is and how it is used, this article provides detailed guidance on definitions and examples of Personification, and how it can be used in a sentence.
Table of Contents
Meaning of Personification
Sometimes the sun smiles, the wind whispers to the trees, and the shadows of the leaves dance in the wind. Although literally, the sun cannot smile, the leaves cannot dance without legs, and the wind cannot whisper because it doesn’t have a mouth, we apply human characteristics and create these metaphors to describe a scene. When we talk about non-human things as if they were human, we personify them. Personification is a kind of metaphor in which you describe an inanimate object, abstract thing, or non-human animal in human terms. It is used to create more interesting and engaging scenes or characters.
100 Examples of Metaphor
Common Personification Examples
The following are some everyday examples of personification you’ll hear people say, or see in a book. Each example shows an object exhibiting a human character trait.
- Lightning danced across the sky.
- The wind howled in the night.
- The car complained as the key was roughly turned in its ignition.
- Rita heard the last piece of pie calling her name.
- My alarm clock yells at me to get out of bed every morning.
- The avalanche devoured anything standing in its way.
- The door protested as it opened slowly.
- My house is a friend who protects me.
- The moon played hide and seek with the clouds.
- The approaching car’s headlights winked at me.
- The camera loves her since she is so pretty.
- The stairs groaned as we walked on them.
- Our vacuum hums a happy tune while it cleans.
- My flowers were begging for water.
- The ivy wove its fingers around the fence.
- The thunder was grumbling in the distance.
- The cactus saluted those who drove past.
- The wildfire ran through the forest at an amazing speed.
- The moon smiled at the stars in the sky.
- The leaves waved in the wind.
- Time flies when you’re having fun.
Personification in Poetry and Books
There are many examples of personification in literature. The first example is from Carl Sandburg’s “The Fog.” In this poem, fog is given the human ability to sit and look.
- The fog comes
- on little cat feet.
- It sits looking
- over harbor and city
- on silent haunches
- and then moves on.
The next example is from the popular nursery rhyme “Hey Diddle Diddle.” In this rhyme, both animals and objects are able to do things that humans do. This includes laughing and running.
- Hey, diddle, diddle,
- The cat and the fiddle,
- The cow jumped over the moon;
- The little dog laughed
- To see such sport,
- And the dish ran away with the spoon.
The following example is from James Stephens’ “Check”. In this example, night is given the human qualities of creeping and being silent.
- The night was creeping on the ground!
- She crept and did not make a sound.
The next example is from Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree. In this story, the tree has many human emotions and traits. The tree can talk. The tree can give things to the boy and the tree can experience sadness and joy.
- And then one day the boy came back and the tree shook with joy.
The following is an example of personification used in The One and Only Ivan by Katharine Applegate. The main character Ivan is a gorilla that is given human qualities. The following lines make it seem like he thinks and expresses himself like a human.
- I think for a while. It’s hard to put into words. Gorillas are not complainers. We’re dreamers, poets, philosophers, nap takers.
The last example is from The Day The Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt. In this book, the crayons feel emotions and act like humans. The crayons express that they had enough of drawing and quit.
- I have to color all the Santas at Christmas and all the hearts on Valentine’s Day. I need a rest.
- Your overworked friend,
- Red Crayon
Personification is a fun form of figurative language that is used to grab the readers’ attention and is a great way to make it easier for kids to relate to the object or animal in a story and understand the writer’s message. Try using personification in your next story, poem, or classroom assignment. You’ll find it can be enjoyable to make a thing act like a human. Personification is just one way of making your writing more interesting and original.
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