Answers to Metaphor and Simile Test

(Metaphor and Simile Test)

1) Simile: Love is like oxygen, because it has similar qualities. Hint: when you see the word "like" - as in "similar to" - you've probably got a simile and you definitely don't have a metaphor.

2) Metaphor: Love is a flower, because it behaves the same. When you see the word "is", and not the word "like", as if you are making an equation between two different concepts ("Love = a flower"), you've definitely got a metaphor.

3) Metaphor: Television is seen as if it were a drug. The word "drug" is substituting the words "entertainment device" as if the two behave the same. The full lyrics of the song includes phrases such as "methadone metronome", referring to one's TV schedule as a regular habit of "injections" (ie: "I need my daily fix of The Simpsons"). Hint: when you see a word from one concept substituting a word from another, and it makes sense, it's very likely a metaphor.

4) Metaphor: "Upstairs" replaces the word "Heaven", as if you are in God's home, and Heaven has the top floor. Hint: sometimes a metaphor stands alone, and refers to something that is implied. Similes are never implied.

5) Simile: They run away and scatter in much the same way as pigs running from the sound of a gun. Note the use of the word "like". They are not the same as pigs, nor guns.

6) Metaphor: There are (probably) no lepers in your head. But you can envision our bad experiences as something in need of healing - in this case, such healing would be a miracle. A metaphor is capable of creating impossible situations to make a point.

Answer to Bonus Question: (S=Simile; M=Metaphor)

a) "A great song is like a salad dressing (S): you need just the right amount of sweet (M), sour (M) and salt (M) to get it right and when you do you only notice the balance of flavours (M), not the ingredients (M)."

A great song is only like a salad dressing, but it is made of parts that have poetic or musical flavours. "Sweet" refers to happy, soft, positive music and lyrics (eg: "The sweet sound of children's laughter"), while "sour" is indicative of sarcasm or imbalance (eg: "that subject is a sour note around here...") and "salt" of jurisprudence, maturity or practicality (he was the salt of the earth).

b) Stevie Wonder is declaring that you are sunshine. This is an equation, and not an approximation, which makes this a metaphor. Further evidence of this metaphor is common among lovers, with the pet name "Sunshine" being among the most popular. We also use the words "Honey", "Sugar", "Flower", "Blossom"  and "Baby" to describe loved ones, all of which are references to food, energy or vitality. Perhaps this explains why so many songs also contain the phrase "I can't live without you".

The Florida Citrus Commission had written what was clearly intended to be a simile. They liken the intake of orange juice to sunshine, as if the two are interchangeable, but it is impossible to tell for certain whether the absence of other breakfast foods may result in the same dim consequences. The weakness of this slogan  is that one presumably can skip orange juice on days the sun is shining. Try comparing the effect of this slogan to the effect of the metaphors "A day without orange juice is a dull day" or "Orange juice brightens your day". 

Note: Sunkist ("sun kissed") prides in being "the largest marketing cooperative in the worlds fruit and vegetable industry". The relationship between sun and orange is made intimate with the use of the metaphor "kissed" (Sunkist) - the food energy of the orange really is the product of the sun "kissing" the leaves of the orange tree. 

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Test by J.D. Casnig, http://knowgramming.com/metaphors