Figures of Speech & Literary Devices is one of 9 topics in the Grade 12 English First Additional Language CAPS syllabus, covered across 3 lessons on Study Vault. Below are real practice questions from this topic with full worked answers.
Sample practice questions
Easy
1. Identify the figure of speech: "The old man's hands were as rough as tree bark."
Simile
Metaphor
Onomatopoeia
Alliteration
Answer: Simile — This is a simile because it compares two unlike things (hands and bark) using the word "as" to highlight their shared roughness.
Easy
2. Identify the figure of speech: "Her classroom was a zoo by the final period."
Metaphor
Simile
Hyperbole
Onomatopoeia
Answer: Metaphor — This is a metaphor because it states directly that the classroom WAS a zoo, without using "like" or "as" to make the comparison explicit.
Medium
3. Identify the figure of speech: "The old gate groaned in protest as the wind pushed against it."
Answer: Personification — This is personification because the gate, a non-human object, is given the human ability to "groan in protest."
