#figurative language

A collection of fun figurative expressions I've learned/come across.

【1】 劈腿 pǐtuǐ Literal: to do the splits Figurative: two-timing (in romantic relationships)

【2】 穿小鞋 chuānxiǎoxié Literal: wear tight shoes Figurative: to make life difficult for sbdy

【3】 鸡肋（雞肋）jīlèi Literal: chicken ribs Figurative: smth of little value that one is reluctant to give up

【4】 绊脚石（絆腳石）bànjiǎoshí Literal: stone that trips one's foot Figurative: stumbling block / obstacle / smth that gets in your way

【5】 摸鱼（摸魚）mōyú Literal: to catch fish Figurative: to loaf on the job / slack off

【6】 踢皮球 tīpíqiú Literal: to kick a ball around Figurative: to mutually shirk responsibility / to pass the buck

【7】 乌鸦嘴（烏鴉嘴）wūyāzuǐ Literal: crow's beak Figurative: person who makes an inauspicious remark (jinxes it)

figurative language is 'bad' or 'nonsense' or indicative of AI

It's not. Literary prose is often written in a way which incorporates unusual or metaphorical descriptions to enhance atmosphere or to prod the reader to think about the character's actions.

If LLMs like CGPT are using figurative language, it is likely because they 'learned' it from 'reading' literary prose.

I see posts saying things like, "what does it mean to 'gesture softly?' you can't even do that!"

and no, not LITERALLY. The author is trying to get you to engage with the text and the figurative use of language. You DO know what it means. It means that the person was gesturing in a manner that was delicate or not emphatic. The phrase might be intended to tell you about that character's personality or relationship to other characters in the scene.

I was reading 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez (translated by Gregory Rabassa) last night and thinking about this. There is a line in the book where the author writes:

Úrsula replied with a soft firmness:

The description of her speech as both soft and firm simultaneously is not meant to be literally interpreted. You could rewrite the sentence to be more literally correct by saying something like:

Úrsula replied calmly, but it was clear that she would not be persuaded away from her position.

But it would be a worse sentence. It's longer and more complex for no reason, and it doesn't contribute to the atmosphere of the piece or add to the stylistic choices. "Soft firmness" is interesting, makes the reader think about what Márquez is doing, and helps to characterize Úrsula.

As a trans teen, I get a lot of questions about my identity. What gender am I? How do pronouns work? How did I know I was trans? I'm quite used to these questions, especially coming from middle-aged and older adults trying to figure out how this whole transgender thing works. I'd like to think I've gotten fairly good at explaining myself to people, and although it's not my favorite thing in the world, I'm happy to be the person who teaches them about transness if they wouldn't have had the knowledge otherwise. One thing that I particularly struggle with, though, is explaining this concept to children. A lot of queer people will tell you that kids easily understand the concept of queerness and gender and that one casual conversation is all it takes for them to make sense of the queer people in their lives. Although I don't doubt this is true for kids who have grown up surrounded by queerness and counterculture values, the society that exists in mainstream culture doesn't allow most kids to learn about these things naturally as they grow. Unfortunately, this means that this task falls into the hands of people like me, which is not easy. These kids have been taught one narrative their entire lives, and it's hard to turn that on its head in one day, especially as they get older. I ran into this issue once when an 8 year old who I had been attending a summer camp with asked me, "Are you a boy or a girl"? I told her I was a boy, because I wasn't in a teaching mood, hoping that would be the end of it. But I saw the confusion in her face later that day when we happened to be in the women's bathroom at the same time, and she asked, "Why are you in here? You said you were a boy!"

I tried my best to explain myself to her, but it was clear she didn't understand and was uncomfortable talking to me or being around me for the rest of the camp. This experience really saddened and frustrated me; I wished there was just a simple way I could explain it to her in a way that she would actually understand.

So now, a year later, I have finally put together what I hope will be a tool for many others like me, including trans kids, teens, parents, relatives, and anyone else who wants to educate the little ones in their lives about one way that people can be different. I chose the metaphor of a world influenced by an infant's natural hair color, with clear relationships between this arbitrary physical characteristic and expectations for toys, clothing, and activities that the child would enjoy. The story follows the life of a child named Charlie whose hair color is brown, but wishes for it to be blonde. Charlie models what gender dysphoria can look like in children and how it can make them feel when others refuse to affirm their identity. Charlie eventually develops autonomy by dying her hair blonde and finding community in spaces with others like her, opening herself up to all kinds of identities and finding the unique beauty that each individual's hair holds despite what it looked like when they were born. I hope that by offering this story for free, it can reach as many families and individuals as possible and educate kids and adults about the full spectrum of humanity. 

I encourage you to share this with others–send the link to friends and family, post on social media, print and put in your local Little Free Library–but please note that it is not permitted to be sold commercially. Because I am monolingual, I am not able to offer the original copy in languages other than English. However, if anyone needs or wants to translate it for any reason, you are more than welcome to! My main goal is to make this story as accessible as possible; this is not meant to be an exclusive piece, but a resource for all who need it. This also applies to anyone who is familiar with accessibility tools for disabled individuals, as I am still working to familiarize myself with these tools to make my content more accessible for everyone. If you would like to further support the work I do or the causes I care about, I highly recommend contributing to organizations focused on supporting trans youth however you can, whether it's through a monetary donation, volunteer work, or simply spreading the word. I particularly appreciate the work of TransFamilies and Trans Youth Equality Foundation that support trans and nonbinary youth in a multitude of ways. Pride month is over, but the fight continues year-round for the safety and acceptance of trans people everywhere. Thank you for your support, and I hope that I have made a helpful resource for you or someone you love <3

[id: a simple worksheet about various types of Figurative Language. Each term has a definition, a few examples, and a black and white illustration. Transcription follows:

Figurative Language!

Alliteration: Repetition of the same beginning word sound in a written unit Examples: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers See the sun set slowly in the sky

(Image: unintelligible words except their first letters; a set with all 'A's and a set with all 'SH's)

Dramatic Irony: When the audience knows something the character does not Examples: In Romeo and Juliet, we know that Juliet is faking death. Romeo thinks she is really dead, so he kills himself in grief In Frozen, Olaf is excited about summer, but the audience knows he would just melt

(Image: A person casting the shadow of a wolf howling behind them)

Hyperbole: An exaggerated statement Examples: I caught a fish bigger than a house! I’m so thirsty I could drink a whole lake!

(Image: A house with a fish as long as it is tall)

Idiom: A phrase meant to convey an idea beyond its literal meaning Examples: Let the cat out of the bag: reveal a secret Beat around the bush: Avoid getting to the point

(Image: a cat poking its head and front paws out of a bag. It holds a small piece of paper with question marks on it in its mouth)

Irony: A situation that seems to contradict itself Examples: A fire extinguisher on fire A misspelled spelling bee trophy

(Image: a fire extinguisher on fire)

Metaphor: A comparison not using ‘like’ or ‘as’ Examples: The task was a mountain standing in her way The coroner’s smile was a row of gravestones

(Image: a path leading to a mountain labeled 'Homework')

Onomatopoeia: A word that sounds like the sound it represents Examples: Boom! Ding, snap, meow, hiss, beep

(Image: a cartoony explosion with the word 'Boom", and a desk bell with the word 'Ding')

Oxymoron: A phrase made of two opposites Examples: Jumbo Shrimp, Pretty Ugly

(Image: a large shrimp)

Personification: Allocating human traits to non human objects or animals Examples: The donuts called out to me The printer could sense my fear

(Image: a donut yelling 'Hey!')

Simile: A comparison using the word ‘like’ or ‘as’ Examples: Her dress sparkled like the Milky Way The fluorescent lights were as bright as the sun

(Image: A sleeveless dress with a sparkling skirt next to a blob of night sky and stars)

Symbolism: The repeated use of image/characteristics to connect to larger ideas Examples: sun/moon or day/night: good/bad, solid/mysterious, loud/quiet Sapling: growth, resilience, fragility

(Image: a half sun/half moon, and a small plant sprout)

/end id]

Lucifer: Alastor, will you get up here and give me a hand?

Alastor: *tosses a severed hand from one of his victims towards Lucifer, which lands at his feet*

Lucifer: *chuckles* That's very funny Al, THIS IS SERIOUS!

This is the fence that protects it.

The flowers bloom beautifully inside my garden.

It didn’t have any pesticides or harmful chemicals.

but that changed when you broke down my fence, when you invaded my garden.

when you poisoned my plants, when you ruined everything, when you made my flowers droop.

when you made them droop like my face when I realize I still miss you.

I’m almost addicted to you. You harm me but right now. You are healing me. Like the pesticides you spray.

but in the long run

healing and harm can be the same thing.

after all.

but only the traumatized realize the difference.

When you grabbed me by the arm and said,

“I can heal you. These chemicals will heal everything.”

But doubt suddenly hit me

like it was a stain on a piece of clothing.

but you continue to push on.

like a child messily washing their clothes, the stain of doubt slowly went away.

but we all know—

the particles of doubt still remained on the clothing.

but those particles can’t be seen by my eyes.

so I muttered a reluctant “fine”

Oh so slightly the sun dimmed and the petals of my flowers drooped.

I then felt your pesticides ‘heal’ my garden.

I think I smiled.

but your smile wasn’t a smile.

you know what you did.

And god dammit, it worked.

Now I spend my days in the dull barn—

only the hay drowned me in the barn.

it constantly tickled me.

it reminded me of the pesticides.

you claimed would heal me.

but it’s okay, it’s fine.

you can hurt me.

healing and harm is the same

right?