Success Homeschool

Year 5 English · Similes and metaphors

Name: ______________________

Date: ____________

1. Which sentence contains a simile?
- ☐ (a) Her smile was bright.
- ☐ (b) Her smile was as bright as the sun.
- ☐ (c) Her smile was the sun.
2. Which sentence is a metaphor?
- ☐ (a) The classroom was like a zoo.
- ☐ (b) The classroom was noisy.
- ☐ (c) The classroom was a zoo.
3. 'The old man's hands were as rough as sandpaper.' What does this tell us?
- ☐ (a) His hands were made of sandpaper.
- ☐ (b) He was holding sandpaper.
- ☐ (c) His hands felt very rough.
4. 'The snow was a white blanket over the town.' What is the snow compared to?
- ☐ (a) a blanket
- ☐ (b) a town
- ☐ (c) a cloud
5. Why do writers use similes and metaphors?
- ☐ (a) to give instructions
- ☐ (b) to help readers picture things vividly
- ☐ (c) to make sentences shorter
6. Which word makes this a simile? 'He ran like the wind.' Type the word.
7. Fill the gap to make a simile: 'The kitten was ___ soft as a cloud.'
8. Is 'Her voice was music to my ears' a simile or a metaphor? Type one word.

Answer sheet

1. Her smile was as bright as the sun. — It compares her smile with the sun using 'as… as'.
2. The classroom was a zoo. — It says the classroom was a zoo, without 'like' or 'as'.
3. His hands felt very rough. — The simile compares how his hands feel with the roughness of sandpaper.
4. a blanket — The snow is compared to a blanket because it covers everything.
5. to help readers picture things vividly — Comparisons create strong pictures in the reader's mind.
6. like — Similes use 'like' or 'as'. Here the word is 'like'.
7. as — 'As soft as a cloud' uses the 'as… as' pattern.
8. metaphor — It says her voice was music, with no 'like' or 'as', so it is a metaphor.