Similes in Everyday Language
Similes are used in literature to make writing more vivid and powerful. In everyday speech, they
can be used to convey meaning quickly and effectively. Many commonly used
expressions (idioms) are similes.
For example, when someone says "He is as busy as a bee," it means he is working hard, as bees
are known to be extremely busy. If someone says "I am as snug as a bug in a rug," they mean
that they feel very comfortable and cozy or are tucked up tight in bed. Explore some phrases that
represent examples of similes.
as cute as a kitten
as happy as a clam
as bold as brass
as bright as a button
as shiny as a new pin
as common as dirt
as big as a house
as hot as hell
as innocent as a dove
as thin as a rail
as tough as nails
as white as a ghost
as sweet as sugar
swims like a dolphin
grows like a weed
has a voice like a foghorn
runs like the wind
climbs like a monkey
rain fell like teardrops
love is like a rose
Similes Add Depth to Creative Writing
Similes can make our language more descriptive and enjoyable. Writers, poets and songwriters
make use of similes often to add depth and emphasize what they are trying to convey to the
reader or listener in a vivid way. Similes can be funny, serious, mean, or creative. Similes are
often used in creative writing.
Following are some more examples of similes regularly used in writing:
You were as brave as a lion.
They fought like cats and dogs.
He is as funny as a barrel of monkeys.
This house is as clean as a whistle.
He is as strong as an ox.
Your explanation is as clear as mud.
Watching the show was like watching grass grow.
That is as easy as shooting fish in a barrel.
This contract is as solid as quicksand.
That guy is as nutty as a fruitcake.
This cot is as comfortable as a bed of nails.
Well, that went over like a lead balloon.
They are as different as night and day.
She is as thin as a rake.
Last night, I slept like a baby.
This dress is perfect because it fits like a glove.
He could hear like an owl.
My love for you is as deep as the ocean.
I am so thirsty that my throat is as dry as the Sahara desert.
The dancer moved like a gazelle.
Similes in Classic Literature
Examples of similes can be seen in classic literature, including poems and plays.
A Red, Red Rose by Robert Burns
In "A Red, Red Rose," poet Robert Burns says that love is "like a red, red rose" and that it is
"like the melodie."
"O my Luve is like a red, red rose / That's newly sprung in June; / O my Luve is like the
melodie / That's sweetly played in tune."
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Another example of a simile can be found in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. When Romeo
talks to Mercutio before the Capulets' party, he talks about the pain of love, saying that it "pricks
like thorn."
"Is love a tender thing? It is too rough, / too rude, too boisterous, and it pricks like thorn."
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