Identify the figure of speech used in the following lines:-
'The house was crouching on its elbows then,'
Choose the appropriate option from the ones given below:-
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Personification
Personification:
- Personification gives human actions, feelings or body parts to something that is not human.
- In the line, the house is said to be "crouching on its elbows": it is given elbows and a human posture, as if it were a tired person bending low.
Example: The old door groaned as it opened.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: Alliteration — Incorrect. Alliteration is the repetition of the same first consonant sound in nearby words; the line has no such pattern.
Example: She sells seashells by the seashore.
Option 3: Simile — Incorrect. A simile compares two things using "like" or "as"; the line has no comparing word.
Example: The child ran like the wind.
Option 4: Hyperbole — Incorrect. Hyperbole is deliberate exaggeration for effect; the line gives a house a human posture, it does not exaggerate.
Example: I have told you a thousand times to shut the door.
Contrast: personification gives a thing a human action or posture (a house crouching on its elbows); a simile only compares two things with "like" or "as".