Hyperbole, puns, oxymorons and sound words

Grade 6 Reading Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. 1.

   Four lines about a messy room. Ren looks for a figure of speech. Which line uses hyperbole?

   • The toy robot on the shelf was a tiny giant.
   • The books hit the floor with a loud thud.
   • The room was messy, and the desk had two cups on it.
   • The room was so messy it needed its own zip code.
2. 2.

   Four lines about a game. Jun looks for a figure of speech. Which line uses an oxymoron?

   • The new goalie was quite a catch.
   • The ball went whoosh past the goalie.
   • After the goal, the crowd let out a quiet roar.
   • The game lasted a hundred hours.
3. 3.

   Waiting for the bus took a hundred years. Luz reads the sentence. What does the figure add that plain words would not?

   • it shows how slow and boring the wait felt
   • it says the bus was late
   • it tells the reader the wait lasted a century
   • it lets the reader hear the bus arrive
4. 4.

   At the quiet library table, the friends felt alone together. Bo reads the sentence. What does the figure add that plain words would not?

   • it says the friends sat in different rooms
   • it says the friends were in a library
   • it stretches the truth so the quiet sounds enormous
   • it shows two feelings at once: close to friends yet quiet and apart
5. 5.

   The faucet went drip, drip, drip all night. Noah reads the sentence. What does the figure add that plain words would not?

   • it makes the faucet sound enormous in the night
   • it says the faucet was leaking
   • it lets the reader hear the steady noise
   • it says the faucet was talking
6. 6.

   The thermometer was a good student: it had many degrees. Tala reads the sentence. What does the figure add that plain words would not?

   • it says the thermometer measures temperature
   • it makes the thermometer sound enormous
   • it makes a joke by using two meanings of “degrees”
   • it says the thermometer went to college
7. 7.

   Ari looked at the cafeteria line and said, “This line goes on for a hundred miles.” Kira reads the scene. Which choice names the figure of speech and tells why?

   • onomatopoeia: “goes on” sounds like walking feet
   • hyperbole: no line is really a hundred miles long
   • oxymoron: a short wait and a long line are opposites
   • pun: “line” can mean a row of people or a phone line
8. 8.

   The popcorn went pop, pop, pop in the pot. Ari reads the scene. Which choice names the figure of speech and tells why?

   • oxymoron: “pop” and “pot” are opposite words
   • pun: “pop” can mean a fizzy drink or a sudden sound
   • hyperbole: the popcorn pops more than any pot could hold
   • onomatopoeia: “pop” sounds like the noise popcorn makes
9. 9.

   Everyone knew who won the contest, but the judges called it an open secret. Milo reads the scene. Which choice names the figure of speech and tells why?

   • oxymoron: “open” and “secret” are opposite words side by side
   • pun: “open” can mean not shut or honest
   • hyperbole: the secret was bigger than the whole school and its yard
   • onomatopoeia: “kept” sounds like a lock clicking
10. 10.

    Why did the broom win the contest? It swept the competition. Zee reads the scene. Which choice names the figure of speech and tells why?

    • hyperbole: the broom beat more players than any broom could
    • onomatopoeia: “swept” sounds like the noise of a broom
    • oxymoron: “broom” and “contest” are opposite words
    • pun: “swept” means cleaning with a broom and also winning easily