Aspirants may expect 4 to 5 questions on the concept of Figures of speech in Verbal Ability section of XAT. The probability is more in XAT 2014 as these questions were missing in XAT 2013. There were 5 questions in XAT 2010 on spotting the sentences with correct use of Figures of Speech. MBAUniverse.com brings before the aspirants key learning tips from Prof. S.K. Agarwal, an expert in Verbal Ability area, to spot the right sentence with correct usage of these floral vocabulary compounds.
What is termed as Figures of Speech?
When a writer or speaker uses a word or expression in a different sense from the one that normally belongs to it, its use is called figurative i.e the figure of speech. By the use of figures of speech, a language becomes more effective and beautiful. Figurative language creates figures (pictures) in the mind of the reader or listener. These pictures help convey the meaning faster and more vividly than words alone.
Figurative language is the opposite of literal language. Literal language means exactly what it says. Figurative language means something different to (and usually more than) what it says on the surface.
Learn the important Figures of speech
XAT gives more emphasis on correct use of figures of speech in English language. There are hundreds of them but it may not be possible to learn and practice all of them. It will be in the interest of aspirants to know the important ones which frequently appear in XAT.
Metaphor - the substitution of a word for a word whose meaning is close to the original word (An implied Simile) - All the world’s a stage; and all the men and women merely players
Simile - Comparison of two things of different kinds which have one or more points of resemblance. The comparison is made by using such words as like, so, as - i) Her lips trembled like a leaf; ii)He is as slow as a tortoise
Key difference- There cannot be Simile without the key words like, as, so, In Metaphor the dissimilar object is made similar to the subject used. Sardar Patel was like an Iron Man of India. (Simile-use of comparison word like); Sardar Patel was the Iron Man of India (Metaphor-Sardar Patel has been made the Iron man)
Hyperbole - exaggerated or extravagant statement used to make a strong impression, but not intended to be taken literally - Ten thousand saw I at a glance tossing their heads in sprightly dance
Personification - Inanimate objects or abstract ideas are spoken of as if they were living persons- Death lays his icy hands on kings and cobblers alike
Oxymoron - It is a combination of two words of opposite meaning in one expression- James, I was the wisest fool in Christendom
Apostrophe - An address to a particular person or object, often dead or absent - O Death, where is thy sting.
Onomatopoeia - Use of the words which suggest the sense by their sound e.g. crash, bang, hiss, mew, rattle, whisper, murmuring, humming etc - The rattle of the hail upon the roof.
Alliteration - the repetition of the initial sounds (usually consonants) of stressed syllables in neighbouring words or at short intervals within a line or passage, usually at word beginnings, as in “wild and woolly”- Becky’s beagle barked and bayed, becoming bothersome for Billy.
Pun- Use of a word in such a way that it is capable of more than one application, the object being to produce a ludicrous effect. - I wanted to be a stenographer, but they told me that they were not short- handed at the moment.
Euphemism - Description of a disagreeable thing by an agreeable name- You are telling me a fairy tale (=a lie)
Epigram - A brief pointed saying frequently introducing antithetical ideas which excite surprise and arrest attention. - The child is the father of the man
Synecdoche- A part is used to designate the whole or the whole to designate a part- All hands (crew) to the pumps.
Assonance - Identity or similarity in sound between internal vowels in neighbouring words. - It beats as it sweeps as it cleans.
Epanalepsis - repetition of the beginning at the end. - Blood hath bought blood, and blows have answer'd blows:/ Strength match'd with strength, and power confronted power
XAT 2014 General Awareness - Solve 100 probable questions
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Non-sequitur- A statement in which a conclusion does not follow logically from what preceded it.- Warming was caused by sunspots, or fluctuations in the Earth's orbit, or volcanic eruptions. Therefore it cannot be caused by mankind. (Just because Earth has warmed for one or another reason in the past is no reason why it cannot warm for a completely different reason in the future- so a non- sequitur).
Sample Questions- set 1– Direction – Name the various figures of speech in the following sentences –
He watches from his mountain walls, and like a thunderbolt he falls.
This place is a paradise for me
Violet, sweet violet, Thine eyes are full of tears.
He can best be described as a busy idler.
How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank.
The children nearly died of laughter at the clown’s antics.
Belinda smiled and all the world was gay.
Oh my sweet heart, though salt seas divide us, thou are ever present to my vision.
Swiftly walk over the western wave, Spirit of Night.
Knowledge is proud that it knows so much; Wisdom is humble that it knows no more.
Answers to sample questions set -1
He watches from his mountain walls, And like a thunderbolt he falls. (Metaphor, Simile)
This place is a paradise for me (Metaphor, hyperbole)
Violet, sweet violet, Thine eyes are full of tears. (Apostrophe, Personification)
He can best be described as a busy idler. (Oxymoron)
How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank. (Personification)
The children nearly died of laughter at the clown’s antics. (Hyperbole)
Belinda smiled and all the world was gay. (Hyperbole)
Oh my sweet heart, though salt seas divide us, thou are ever present to my vision. (Apostrophe, Hyperbole)
Swiftly walk over the western wave, Spirit of Night. (Personification, Apostrophe))
Knowledge is proud that it knows so much; Wisdom is humble that it knows no more. (Personification, Oxymoron)
XAT 2014 General Awareness - Solve 100 probable questions
Past XAT questions – Set-2
Q.1 which of the following sentences draws a metaphor-
(1) Karl Marx argued that the interests of two classes-the proletariat and bourgeois-are always in conflict and irreconcilable
(2)Karl marx lebelled the Capitalist a parasite on the back of labour because the whole value or produce created by the laboring man was expropriated by the Capitalist.
(3) Weber held that the protestant ethic was responsible for rise of capitalism in medieval Europe.
(4) Galbiath argued for a better balance between private affluence and public poverty, including measures to protect the environment against the excesses of Private Companies.
(5) Schumpeter argued that the changes in economy are brought about by creative destruction.
Q.2-Which sentence includes an example of Personification?
Take airline pilots for example; they do not need to be graduates to qualify for this job and most pilots are on a salary of Rs.300, 000 per month or more.
Banjaras of Rajasthan are the human equivalent of an endangered species and have no defence against the encroachment of farmers onto their ancestral lands.
Recent research provided stark evidence that in education money still plays an important role; it was found that children from poor households could not perform as well as children from rich households.
Girls in the family should have a share in the ancestral property as a matter of right whether they will includes it explicitly or not.
Democracy does not help the common citizen and it ultimately degenerates into an oligarchy.
Q.3 which sentence suffers most from hyperbole?
(1) Most collectors of coins would give the Earth to own one of the copper coins issued by Mohammed Bin Tughlaq.
(2) It is thought that eating raw tomatoes would greatly reduce the risk of cancer, but tomato sauce can have a greater effect since it is made from many raw tomatoes.
(3) Cricket has a great following in India, but the twenty-twenty format took the game to nook and corner of the world.
(4) We face an imminent drinking water crisis in India as the population growth is accompanied by a general decrease in rainfall.
(5) Nuclear fusion has potential to solve the energy crisis of not only our country, but that of the entire world.
Q.4 which sentence includes a euphemism?
(1) Cell phone network signals are weak in the hilly regions.
(2) Bottled water is reputed to be safe for drinking under all circumstances.
(3) A cemetery is a place where people are buried when they pass away.
(4) It is stupid to cry over split milk.
(5) Criminal court arbitrates between the parties to the case.
Q.5 Which of the following contains a non-sequitur?
(1) If statisticians are made judges, they will accept or reject arguments based on probability analysis.
(2) Public trust in politicians is at an all time low and we can’t insist that the politicians go back to school.
(3) Before preparing the annual budget, the CEO of XYZ Steel Limited takes opinion of all the stakeholders.
(4) In cricket, the batting average does not always reflect a batsman’s ability because it does not reflect how many wins he was instrumental for.
(5) Ordinary citizens do not have sufficient grasp of economic indicators to validate published inflation data.
XAT 2014 General Awareness - Solve 100 probable questions
Answers to set-2
(2)-Metaphor is implied simile. Sentence number two ‘lebelled the capitalist a parasite’ – two different objects substituted as same without using any simile word. Other sentences do not qualify for metaphor
(3)-‘money still plays’- money is not a living object nor it can literally play like a child but it has been personified. Other sentences do not qualify for personification.
(1) –‘give the Earth to own’; Earth is the giver and could collectors give the Earth to own, so symbolic exaggerated use.
(3) Euphemism is The substitution of an inoffensive term (such as "passed away") for one considered offensively explicit ("died"). Other sentences do not qualify for this despite being close ones.
(2) Non-sequitur is the disconnection between the premise and conclusion. What has been stated about the politicians does not follow the logically to whatever has been stated before the conjunction ‘and’.
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