Personification · Grade 6
In Grade 6 you learn: personification and hyperbole as imagery.
Personification gives a thing, an animal or an idea human actions or feelings: The wind whispered through the trees. It helps the reader picture a scene and feel its mood.
Key facts
- Personification: a thing does something only a person can do: The sun smiled. The old door groaned. The stars winked.
- Personification helps the reader picture a scene and feel its mood: The angry sea sounds dangerous; The leaves danced sounds happy.
- Don't mix it up with a simile, which compares using like or as: The lake was like a mirror.
Worked examples
Example 1
Which word makes this personification? The thunder grumbled in the distance.
Answer: grumbled
Example 2
Turn this into personification: The wind blew the leaves.
Answer: The wind chased the leaves down the street.
Example 3
Find the personification and say what it shows: The old house groaned in the storm.
Answer: groaned: the house seems tired and in pain, which makes it feel old and creepy.
Example 4
Personification or hyperbole? The city never sleeps.
Answer: personification
Example 5
How does personification create mood? The fog crept through the streets, swallowing the lamps one by one.
Answer: crept and swallowing make the fog seem alive and hungry, creating a threatening, uneasy mood.