From the given options, select the figure of speech used in the expression:
"The male elephant was a moving mountain."
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Metaphor
The elephant was a moving mountain. The huge animal is called a mountain to convey its size and bulk, with no "like" or "as".
| Option | What it is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Simile | A simile compares two things using "like" or "as". The sentence would need "The male elephant was like a mountain" to be a simile. Here the comparison is made without either word. | "Her eyes shone like stars" is a simile. |
| (2) Metaphor (answer) | A metaphor compares two unlike things directly, by saying that one thing is the other, without "like" or "as". The direct statement gives the comparison more force than a simile. | "The classroom was a zoo when the teacher stepped out" uses a metaphor. |
| (3) Personification | Personification gives a non-human thing human actions, feelings or qualities. The elephant is compared to a mountain, an object, and is given no human quality. | "The wind whispered through the trees" is personification. |
| (4) Oxymoron | An oxymoron puts two words of opposite meaning side by side. "Moving" and "mountain" are not opposites. The sentence contains no contradiction. | "The room fell into a deafening silence" is an oxymoron. |