Words, Stories & Imagination
Explore the tools writers use to give language rhythm, build characters and bring imaginary worlds to life.
Explore the tools writers use to give language rhythm, build characters and bring imaginary worlds to life. Take ten thoughtfully chosen questions at your own pace. Each answer comes with a short explanation to help you connect the facts and remember something new.
What is a metaphor?
Your question-by-question study guide
Prefer to read, or revisit what you learned? Explore every question below. Open an answer when you’re ready.
1. What is a metaphor?
- A list of sources
- A word's pronunciation guide
- A chapter number
- A comparison that treats one thing as another
Reveal answer and explanation
A comparison that treats one thing as another — A metaphor describes one thing in terms of another without using like or as.
2. What is a protagonist?
- A publisher's assistant
- A book's index
- A story's central character
- The author of every poem
Reveal answer and explanation
A story's central character — The protagonist is the principal character whose experiences often drive the narrative.
3. What is a sonnet traditionally composed of?
- 20 lines
- 14 lines
- 8 lines
- 10 lines
Reveal answer and explanation
14 lines — Traditional sonnets contain fourteen lines, with different rhyme patterns across forms.
4. What is alliteration?
- Repetition of initial consonant sounds
- An account of a person's entire life
- The final chapter of a novel
- A type of footnote
Reveal answer and explanation
Repetition of initial consonant sounds — Alliteration repeats nearby initial consonant sounds to create a pattern.
5. What is a biography?
- A story told only through rhyme
- A list of invented words
- A book without an author
- An account of another person's life
Reveal answer and explanation
An account of another person's life — A biography presents a person's life, written by someone else.
6. What is a simile?
- A type of dictionary
- An author's legal name
- A comparison using words such as like or as
- A contradiction in dates
Reveal answer and explanation
A comparison using words such as like or as — Similes make an explicit comparison, such as as quiet as a mouse.
7. What is the setting of a story?
- The binding material
- Its time and place
- Only its final sentence
- The author's salary
Reveal answer and explanation
Its time and place — Setting establishes when and where the events occur.
8. What is an anthology?
- A collection of selected works
- A single word's history
- An unfinished sentence
- A printing error
Reveal answer and explanation
A collection of selected works — Anthologies gather works such as poems or stories, often by multiple authors.
9. What is first-person narration commonly marked by?
- Absence of any narrator
- Only stage directions
- Use of rhyme in every line
- Use of I or we by the narrator
Reveal answer and explanation
Use of I or we by the narrator — A first-person narrator speaks from their own perspective using pronouns such as I.
10. What is dramatic irony?
- A story with no conflict
- A poem without punctuation
- The audience knows something a character does not
- Every character speaking at once
Reveal answer and explanation
The audience knows something a character does not — The knowledge gap between audience and character creates tension or humor.