# Simile

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Figure of speech marked by explicit comparison

Not to be confused with [Smile](/source/Smile) or [Semele](/source/Semele).

The [Madonna](/source/Madonna) album *[Like a Virgin](/source/Like_a_Virgin_(album))*, in whose [title track](/source/Like_a_Virgin_(song)) the narrative persona uses a simile, professing to be experiencing an erotic relationship "like a virgin".

A **simile** ([/ˈsɪmɪli/](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/English)) is a type of [figure of speech](/source/Figure_of_speech) that directly *compares* two unrelated things, using wording to explicitly make the comparison (often, with a grammatical structure of the type "x is like y").[1][2] It is usually understood specifically to entail *figurative* comparison:[3] thus "a wolf is like a dog" is merely a literal comparison, whereas the figurative "a man is like a wolf" is a simile.[4]: 74 In the words of Michael Israel, Jennifer Riddle Harding, and Vera Tobin, "basically, a simile is just a way of describing a target by asserting its similarity to some unexpected entity".[3]: 126

In English, similes are often made explicit by the word "like", as in "Odysseus is like a weasel", but the comparison in a simile can be made explicit in quite different ways, as in "the retirement of Yves Saint Laurent is the fashion equivalent of the breakup of the Beatles". Sometimes, extra information is included to explain precisely how the comparison is intended to work, as in "my kitchen is approximately *the size of* a postage stamp".[3]

## Definition

Similes are often compared (or contrasted) with [metaphors](/source/Metaphor). Similes compare two things explicitly, in English often using the words "like" or "as", whereas metaphors often create an implicit comparison (i.e., saying something "is" something else). Thus *Odysseus is a weasel* is a metaphor, while *Odysseus is like a weasel* is a simile.[3]: 128

However, there are two schools of thought regarding the relationship between similes and metaphors. The first defines them as opposites, such that a statement cannot be both a simile and a metaphor — if it uses a comparison word such as "like" then it is a simile; if not, it is a metaphor.[1][5][2][6] The second school considers metaphor to be the broader category, in which similes are a subcategory — according to which every simile is also a metaphor (but not vice-versa).[7][8][9][10] These two schools reflect differing definitions and usages of the word "metaphor" and regardless of whether it encompasses similes, both agree that similes always involve a direct comparison word such as "like" or "as".

The word *simile* derives from the Latin word *similis* ("similar, like"), while *metaphor* derives from the Greek word *metapherein* ("to transfer").[5] As in the case of metaphors, the thing that is being compared is called the tenor, and the thing it is being compared to is called the vehicle.[11] Author and lexicographer [Frank J. Wilstach](/source/Frank_J._Wilstach) compiled a dictionary of similes in 1916, with a second edition in 1924.

## Uses

### In literature

Sometimes similes and metaphors function in much the same way, as in "O My Luve's like a red, red rose" in the [Robert Burns](/source/Robert_Burns) poem "[A Red, Red Rose](/source/A_Red%2C_Red_Rose)":[1][12] this could be turned into the metaphor "my love is a red rose" without confusing the reader. However, because similes are explicit, it is possible for them to be more elaborate than metaphors while remaining comprehensible,[3] as in the following examples:

- [John Milton](/source/John_Milton), *[Paradise Lost](/source/Paradise_Lost)*, a [Homeric simile](/source/Homeric_simile):[13]

As when a prowling Wolf, ::Whom hunger drives to seek new haunt for prey, ::Watching where Shepherds pen their Flocks at eve ::In hurdl'd Cotes amid the field secure, ::Leaps o'er the fence with ease into the Fold: ::. . . . . . . ::So clomb this first grand Thief into God's Fold[14]

- [William Shakespeare](/source/William_Shakespeare), *[The Merchant of Venice](/source/The_Merchant_of_Venice)*:

- - How far that little candle throws his beams! - So shines a good deed in a naughty world.[15]

- - Stopping her from going was like trying to catch a bullet with a pair of tweasers, impossible.[15]

- - Learning to drive was like a deer learning how to walk for the first time. Stumbling until you get it right.[15]

Authors sometimes use similes to establish a comparison explicitly, using metaphors thereafter once the comparison has been established[16] (the same process can happen in everyday conversations, either with the metaphor or the simile coming first).[17]: 71–75

### In comedy

Similes are used extensively in British comedy, notably in the [slapstick](/source/Slapstick) era of the 1960s and 1970s. In comedy, the simile is often used in negative style: "he was as daft as a brush." They are also used in a comedic context where a sensitive subject is broached, and the comedian will test the audience with a response to a subtle implicit simile before going deeper.[18] The sitcom *[Blackadder](/source/Blackadder)* featured the use of extended similes, normally said by the title character. For example:

- - Baldrick: I have a plan, sir. - Blackadder: Really, Baldrick? A cunning and subtle one? - Baldrick: Yes, sir. - Blackadder: As cunning as a fox who's just been appointed Professor of Cunning at Oxford University?[19]

## In languages other than English

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding missing information. (April 2026)

Given that similes emphasize affinities between different objects, they occur in many cultures and languages.

### Arabic

[Sayf al-Din al-Amidi](/source/Sayf_al-Din_al-Amidi) discussed Arabic similes in 1805: ["On Substantiation Through Transitive Relations"](http://www.wdl.org/en/item/2981)[*[dead link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Link_rot)*].

### Vietnamese

Thuy Nga Nguyen and [Ghil'ad Zuckermann](/source/Ghil'ad_Zuckermann) (2012) classify Vietnamese similes into two types: Meaning Similes and Rhyming Similes.

The following is an example:

**Nghèo**

/**ŋɛu**

như

ɲɯ

con

kɔn

**mèo**

**mɛu**/

**Nghèo** như con **mèo**

/**ŋɛu** ɲɯ kɔn **mɛu**/

"Poor as a cat"

Whereas the above Vietnamese example is of a **rhyming** simile, the English simile "(as) poor as a church mouse" is only a **semantic** simile.[20]

## See also

For a list of words relating to similes, see the [***English similes*** category of words](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Category:English_similes) in [Wiktionary](/source/Wiktionary), the free dictionary.

- [Alliteration](/source/Alliteration)

- [Analogy](/source/Analogy)

- [Description](/source/Description)

- [Figure of speech](/source/Figure_of_speech)

- [Homeric simile](/source/Homeric_simile)

- [Hyperbole](/source/Hyperbole)

- [Hypocatastasis](/source/Hypocatastasis)

- [Like (as a preposition used in comparisons)](/source/Like#Comparisons)

- [Metaphor](/source/Metaphor)

- [Metonymy](/source/Metonymy)

- [Personification](/source/Personification)

- [Phono-semantic matching](/source/Phono-semantic_matching)

- [Tautology (language)](/source/Tautology_(language))

- [Simile aria](/source/Va_tacito_e_nascosto#Simile_aria)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Bedford447_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Bedford447_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Bedford447_1-2) [*The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms*](https://archive.org/details/bedfordglossaryo00murf_2/page/447) (2nd ed.). Bedford/St. Martins. 2003. pp. [447–448](https://archive.org/details/bedfordglossaryo00murf_2/page/447). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0312259105](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0312259105).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_2-1) ["Simile"](http://literaryterms.net/simile/). *Literary Terms*. 22 June 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2016.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:1_3-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:1_3-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:1_3-4) Michael Israel, Jennifer Riddle Harding, and Vera Tobin, "[On Simile](https://terpconnect.umd.edu/~israel/Israel&al-Simile.pdf)", in *Language, Culture, and Mind*, edited by Michel Achard and Suzanne Kemmer (CSLI Publications, 2004), pp. 123–35.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Cameron, Lynne (2003). *Metaphor in educational discourse*. Advances in applied linguistics. London: Continuum. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-8264-4939-9](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8264-4939-9).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-m340MWDictionary_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-m340MWDictionary_5-1) ["Metaphor Definition & Meaning: Simile vs. Metaphor"](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metaphor#note-2). *[Merriam-Webster](/source/Merriam-Webster)*. Retrieved 4 July 2019.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["LitCharts"](https://www.litcharts.com/literary-devices-and-terms/simile).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** McArthur, Tom, ed. (1992). [*The Oxford companion to the English language*](https://archive.org/details/oxfordcompaniont00mcar/page/652/mode/2up?view=theater). Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. p. 653. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-19-214183-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-214183-5).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Simile vs. Metaphor: What's the Difference?"](https://www.grammarly.com/blog/whats-the-difference-between-a-simile-and-a-metaphor/). *Simile vs. Metaphor: What’s the Difference? | Grammarly*. 2022-09-21. Retrieved 2024-07-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["What's the Difference Between Metaphor, Simile, and Analogy?"](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/metaphor-similie-and-analogy-differences-and-similarities). *MasterClass*. Aug 24, 2021. Retrieved Jul 5, 2024.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** ["What is a Metaphor — Definition and Examples"](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-metaphor-definition/). *StudioBinder*. YouTube. Apr 2, 2023. 4:00 mark in the video. Retrieved Jul 5, 2024.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** ["What Is A Simile?"](https://englishlikeanative.co.uk/what-is-a-simile-with-definition-and-examples/). *English Like A Native*. Retrieved 2021-02-21.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** Burns, Robert. ["A Red Red Rose"](http://digital.nls.uk/special-collections-of-printed-music/pageturner.cfm?id=87802826). *Glen Collection of Printed Music, Vol. 5*. National Library of Scotland. p. 415. Retrieved 2016-04-06.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** Murfin, Ross; Ray, Supryia M. (2003). [*The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms*](https://archive.org/details/bedfordglossaryo00murf_2/page/135) (2nd ed.). Bedford/St. Martins. pp. [135](https://archive.org/details/bedfordglossaryo00murf_2/page/135). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0312259105](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0312259105).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-MiltonTodd1852_14-0)** Milton, John (1852). Henry John Todd (ed.). [*The Poetical Works of John Milton: With Notes of Various Authors; and with Some Account of the Life and Writings of Milton, Derived Principally from Original Documents in Her Majesty's State-paper Office*](https://books.google.com/books?id=3jU-AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA62). Rivingtons, Longman and Company. p. 62.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Scott_and_Bascom_15-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Scott_and_Bascom_15-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Scott_and_Bascom_15-2) William Hall, ed. (1850). [*Encyclopædia of English Grammar: Designed for the Use of Schools, Academies, and Private Learners*](https://books.google.com/books?id=lxhEAQAAMAAJ). Scott and Bascom. p. 352.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-16)** Low, Graham (2010). "Wot no similes? The curious absence of simile in university lectures". In Deignan, Alice; Low, Graham; Cameron, Lynne; Todd, Zazie (eds.). *Researching and Applying Metaphor in the Real World*. Human Cognitive Processing, 26. Amsterdam: Benjamins. p. 295. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1075/hcp.26.17low](https://doi.org/10.1075%2Fhcp.26.17low). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9789027223807](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9789027223807).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-17)** Marhula, Joanna (2018-01-01). [""It's like herding butterflies": Simile-type comparisons and the interplay between similes and metaphors in radio discourse"](https://www.jbe-platform.com/content/journals/10.1075/msw.17002.mar). *Metaphor and the Social World*. **8** (1): 64–80. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1075/msw.17002.mar](https://doi.org/10.1075%2Fmsw.17002.mar). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [2210-4070](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/2210-4070).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-18)** ["What Is A Simile?"](http://www.funnysimiles.com/what_is_a_simile.html). *Funny Similes!*. Retrieved 2016-04-06.[*[permanent dead link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Link_rot)*]

1. **[^](#cite_ref-19)** Edmund_Blackadder (2016-05-02). ["Blackadder Series 4 Episode 6 Goodbyeee Full Script"](https://blackadderquotes.com/blackadder-series-4-episode-6-goodbyeee-full-script). *Blackadder Quotes*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240108085153/https://blackadderquotes.com/blackadder-series-4-episode-6-goodbyeee-full-script) from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 2024-01-21.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-20)** See p. 98 in Thuy Nga Nguyen and [Ghil'ad Zuckermann](/source/Ghil'ad_Zuckermann) (2012), "Stupid as a Coin: Meaning and Rhyming Similes in Vietnamese", *International Journal of Language Studies* 6 (4), pp. 97-118.

## Further reading

- Michael Israel, Jennifer Riddle Harding, and Vera Tobin, "[On Simile](https://terpconnect.umd.edu/~israel/Israel&al-Simile.pdf)", in *Language, Culture, and Mind*, edited by Michel Achard and Suzanne Kemmer (CSLI Publications, 2004), pp. 123–35.

- Beck, Deborah (2023). *The stories of similes in Greek and Roman epic*. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781108481793](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781108481793).

## External links

- [Examples of Simile in Literature](https://englishgrammarsoft.com/what-is-a-simile-examples/)

v t e Figures of speech Schemes Alliteration Anadiplosis Anaphora Antimetabole Antithesis Aposiopesis Assonance Asyndeton Chiasmus Climax Anti Consonance Epanadiplosis Epiphrase Epistrophe Epizeuxis Hendiadys Homeoteleuton Hypallage Hyperbaton Hysteron proteron Isocolon Parallelism Polyptoton Polysyndeton Spoonerism Symploce Tmesis Zeugma Tropes Allegory Allusion Antiphrasis Antonomasia Aphorism Apostrophe Catachresis Ecphonesis Ekphrasis Epanorthosis Found manuscript Hyperbole Adynaton Dysphemism Euphemism Meiosis Innuendo Irony Apophasis Sarcasm Litotes Metaphor Metonymy Oxymoron Onomatopoeia Personification Pleonasm Procatalepsis Pun Antanaclasis Rhetorical question Simile Synecdoche Tautology

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Simile](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simile) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simile?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.