What is the difference between a simile and a metaphor?
Short answer
Both compare two different things. A simile uses the words like or as: "Her smile was like sunshine." A metaphor says one thing is another, without like or as: "Her smile was sunshine." Metaphors usually sound stronger because the comparison is stated as if it were true.
Step by step
- Find the two things being compared.
- Look for the words like or as between them. If they are there, it is a simile.
- If one thing is described as actually being the other, it is a metaphor.
- Explain what the comparison tells the reader about the first thing.
Worked example
Spot the difference
- Simile: The classroom was as noisy as a market.
- Metaphor: The classroom was a zoo.
- Both tell us the classroom was loud and wild.
Common mistakes
- Calling any sentence with like a simile. "I like pizza" is not a comparison.
- Naming the technique without saying what it shows.
- Confusing a metaphor with personification, which gives human qualities to something that is not human.
Useful for:KS2 SATsCommon Entrance11+
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