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# simile

«simile» in Mova's school dictionary: **a way of describing something by comparing it to…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (a simile, similes)

### meaning for a pupil

1) A simile is a way of describing something by comparing it to something else using «like» or «as»: «as brave as a lion», «she ran like the wind». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#m1)

2) Similes help the reader picture something more clearly or feel it more strongly. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#m2)

### sense in the lessons

In English lessons pupils find and write similes in descriptive writing and poetry, and compare them with metaphors. Common similes: «as cold as ice», «as busy as a bee», «as light as a feather», «like a fish out of water». In stories a good fresh simile is better than a tired one.

### examples

- «As white as snow» is a simile. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#x1)
- «He ate like a horse» is a simile using «like». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#x2)
- Write a simile to describe the storm. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#x3)
- «Her eyes shone like stars» is a simile. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#x4)
- A simile uses «like» or «as»; a metaphor does not. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#x5)
- «The classroom was as quiet as a mouse» is a simile. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#x6)
- Try to invent new similes instead of using old ones. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/#x7)

### note

Plural «similes». Say «SIM-ih-lee» (three syllables). Trap: a simile says something is «like» something else; a metaphor says it «is» that thing: «He was a lion in battle» is a metaphor. Not every sentence with «like» is a simile: «I like cake» is not.

### In the corpora

- [A simile compares two things using «like» or «as»: lonely as a cloud.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/25-reading-poems-meaning-sound-and-pictures/20/)
- [A simile compares two things using "like" or "as": "The lake was as flat as a plate."](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/41-describing-senses-showing-and-precise-words/11/)
- [A cliché simile has been used so often that it no longer surprises, like "as quiet as a mouse".](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/41-describing-senses-showing-and-precise-words/12/)
- [Poets paint pictures with words, and they have a few favourite tricks: the simile, the metaphor, personification and alliteration.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/46-poetry-simile-metaphor-personification-alliteration/0/)
- [More similes do not make a better poem: a few strong ones beat a crowd of weak ones.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/46-poetry-simile-metaphor-personification-alliteration/15/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «simile» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/simile/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.