From the given options, select the figure of speech used in the sentence:
The old banyan tree stood guard over the village well, its long arms spread wide.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Personification
A tree cannot “stand guard” like a watchman. It has branches, not “arms”. Here the banyan tree is shown as a person who protects the well.
| Figure | What it is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Personification (answer) | gives human actions or qualities to a thing that is not human | The wind whispered through the mango trees. |
| (2) Simile | compares two things using “like” or “as”. The sentence has no “like” or “as” | Her hands were as cold as ice. |
| (3) Hyperbole | a big exaggeration for effect. Nothing in the sentence is made bigger than it is | I have told you a thousand times to switch off the fan. |
| (4) Onomatopoeia | the use of a word that sounds like the sound it names, such as buzz or hiss. The sentence has no sound word | The bees buzzed around the hive. |