1. Figurative language which presents something the opposite of what it purports to be: irony
In other words, irony is a discrepancy between what is said and what is meant, or to what is expected and what it actually occurs. For example, when someone intentionally says "I am not hungry at all" when in reality they are starving.
2. Indirect comparison: metaphor
A metaphor is a figurative language that asserts that one element is similar to another element. It is a form of indirect comparison because it does not explicitly state that it is making a comparison. For example, "New York is a concrete jungle where dreams are made of is a perfect example"
3. Seems contradictory, but is true: paradox
A paradox is a literary device found in statements that may seem silly, absurd, self-contradictory, and usually opposite to what is commonly believed or accepted in society, but that has a great potential to be true, and it may actually be. For example: "This is the beginning of the end", The beginning and the end may look like two completely opposite concepts, however, in reality, we can find that some "ends" actually mark the "beginning" of something else.
4. Substitutes something closely related to the actual thing: metonymy
Metonymy uses a term that stands in for an object or concept. For example, in the sentence "Let me give you a hand.”, "Hand" stands in for "help".
5. Exaggeration: hyperbole
Hyperbole is a way of speaking or writing in an exaggerated manner that includes words or phrases that are obviously false, with the purpose to emphasize, to add humor or to gain attention on something. For example, "I just ate the biggest pizza in the entire world"
6. Associates part of a thing with the whole: synecdoche
Synecdoche uses the name of a part of something to represent the whole. For example, when we say "sails" to refer to a whole ship, or "wheels" to refer to a car.
7. Comparison utilizing "like" or "as.": simile
For example, "She is like a summer breeze" and "I am as polite as your daughter is"
