Read Between the Lines: Hyperboles & Clichés - The Proverbial Issue



Reading and vocabulary activity

A HYPERBOLE is an obvious and intentional exaggeration, used for emphasis or effect. For example: “I could sleep for a year” or “You made me wait an eternity”, and longer fragments such as:

"My toaster has never once worked properly in four years. I follow the instructions and push two slices of bread down in the slots, and seconds later they rifle upwards. Once they broke the nose of a woman I loved dearly."  (Woody Allen, "My Speech to the Graduates")


This is a real essay written by student Hugh Gallagher when applying to New York University. Mark all hyperboles, including cultural references and clichés.

QUESTION: ARE THERE ANY SIGNIFICANT EXPERIENCES YOU HAVE HAD, OR ACCOMPLISHMENTS YOU HAVE REALIZED, THAT HAVE HELPED TO DEFINE YOU AS A PERSON?
I am a dynamic figure, often seen scaling walls and crushing ice. I have been known to remodel train stations on my lunch breaks, making them more efficient in the area of heat retention. I write award-winning operas, and I manage time efficiently. Occasionally, I cook Thirty-Minute Brownies in twenty minutes. Children trust me.

I once read Paradise Lost, Moby Dick, and David Copperfield in one day and still had time to refurbish an entire dining room that evening. I know the exact location of every food item in the supermarket. I have performed several cover operations for the CIA. I sleep once a week; when I do sleep, I sleep in a chair. While on vacation in Canada, I successfully negotiated with a group of terrorists who had seized a small bakery. The laws of physics do not apply to me.

On weekends, to let off steam, I participate in full-contact origami. I am an abstract artist, a concrete analyst, and a ruthless bookie. I don't perspire. I am a private citizen, yet I receive fan mail. On Wednesdays, after school, I repair electrical appliances free of charge. Years ago I discovered the meaning of life but forgot to write it down. I have made extraordinary meals using only a tomato and a toaster. I have played Hamlet, I have performed open-heart surgery, and I have spoken with Elvis.

But I have not yet gone to college.


 
Clichés

Culture and language “go hand in hand”. People share a common history that influences the way they speak. Some phrases, usually with a humorous component, become popular and speakers start using them often. They are called clichés.  

Exercise: Here are a few examples with very common clichés. Can you match sentence and meaning? Afterwards, use a few to write examples of your own.




1-I work "from dusk till dawn".
2-She's "walking on thin ice".
3-
"It's not over till the fat lady sings."
4-We'll "throw in the towel".
5-It's
"out of this world".
6-"Do I look like I was born yesterday?"  7-I'm "caught between a rock and a hard place".
8-He's
"tough as nails".
9-
"When pigs fly."
10-
"Love it or leave it."
11-That's
"the way the cookie crumbles". 12-He's "on top of the world."  
13-"Whatever will be, will be."
14-"What goes around comes around." 15-"It's all Greek to me!"
16-I have his name "on the tip of my tongue."
17-"Look what the cat brought!"
18-That's
"the lesser of two evils".
19-"Time flies when you're having fun."  20-John’s eating "like there’s no tomorrow".

a-it's not finished yet
b-accept the facts
c-I don't understand
d- all day long
e-never
f-don't worry
g-you get what you give
h- successful, happy
i- in trouble
j- in a dangerous situation
k-an unexpected surprise arrival
l- wonderful
m-
without looking at the consequences
n- give up
o- I'm having a good time
p-hard
q- do you think I’m stupid?
r-reality
s-the best of two bad options
t-I'll remember soon





No comments:

Post a Comment