Personification — English definition
Defined in 3 courses:
- Giving human qualities or actions to something that is not human, like 'the wind whispered through the trees.' (English 6)
- A figure of speech that gives human qualities or actions to something that is not human (e.g., 'the wind whispered'). (English 6)
- Giving a nonhuman thing qualities associated with human action or feeling. (English 7: Reading, Evidence & Expression)
Where it is taught
- Point of View & Figurative Language — Reading Literature, English 6, Grade 6
- Figurative Language & Word Relationships — Language & Vocabulary, English 6, Grade 6
- Figurative Language & Imagery — Poetry, Drama & Comparison, English 7: Reading, Evidence & Expression, Grade 7
In use
Personification hands human qualities to something that is not human — 'the old house groaned in the wind,' or 'the sun smiled down on us.
Point of View & Figurative Language
Two figures of speech you will meet constantly are personification and idioms.
Figurative Language & Word Relationships
Personification hands human qualities to something that isn't human — 'the old house groaned in the wind,' or 'the sun smiled down on us.
Figurative Language & Imagery
Questions using personification
Problem 1
- The leaves were red and orange.
- The autumn leaves danced across the sidewalk.
- The autumn leaves fell onto the sidewalk.
- There were many leaves on the sidewalk.
Answer and explanation
The autumn leaves danced across the sidewalk.
'Danced' is a human action given to the leaves, which is personification. The other sentences describe the leaves literally.
Problem 2
Answer and explanation
Giving a nonhuman thing qualities associated with human action or feeling. First establish the literal action or object. Figurative language invites a comparison or gives a nonhuman object a human quality. If you skip the literal situation, you may invent a meaning that the passage cannot support. A door can creak; it cannot literally reply to a question.
Use the model to discuss reasoning after an independent attempt. A different accurate supported response can be correct; written work needs human marking.
Problem 3
Answer and explanation
Giving a nonhuman thing qualities associated with human action or feeling. The unit case offers this example to examine: The door’s reply personifies an object: a difficult opening is presented as a partial sigh. The image makes resistance to entering audible and connects a physical threshold with the poem’s concern about practical welcome. It does not prove that the door thinks or that every door has the same symbolic meaning. Identify the wording or choice that fits the term. A different accurate example is acceptable.
Use the model to discuss reasoning after an independent attempt. A different accurate supported response can be correct; written work needs human marking.
Problem 4
Answer and explanation
Giving a nonhuman thing qualities associated with human action or feeling. First establish the literal action or object. Figurative language invites a comparison or gives a nonhuman object a human quality. If you skip the literal situation, you may invent a meaning that the passage cannot support. A door can creak; it cannot literally reply to a question.
Use the model to discuss reasoning after an independent attempt. A different accurate supported response can be correct; written work needs human marking.
Taught alongside
- point of view
- first-person point of view
- third-person limited point of view
- third-person omniscient point of view
- figurative language
- simile
- metaphor
- hyperbole
- denotation
- connotation
- idiom
- imagery
- evidence
- qualification