Why is descriptive language used

The trees stood as tall as towers. Metaphor - a descriptive technique that names a person, thing or action as something else. The circus was a magnet for the children. Hyperbole - a use of obvious exaggeration for rhetorical effect. The sun scorched through the day.

Personification - a metaphor attributing human feelings to an object. The sun smiled at the hills, ready to begin a new day. Pathetic fallacy - a type of personification where emotions are given to a setting, an object or the weather. The clouds crowded together suspiciously overhead as the sky darkened.

One of the benefits of using descriptive language is that it helps the writer to convey the meaning behind the text. By using descriptive language, the writer can describe exactly how a setting looks, how a character behaves or what action is taking place. The benefit for the reader is the ability to more clearly visualize what is being described. There is the tendency of some writers to rely so heavily on descriptive language that the actual meaning of the statement gets lost.

Often a writer will rely on cliches which offer no genuine purpose. It is advisable that writers avoid the use of excessive cliches as it adds a tired and trite use to the text. Liza Hollis has been writing for print and online publications since Her work has appeared on various digital properties, including USAToday. Hollis earned a degree in English Literature from the University of Florida. The Definition of Figurative Language. Figurative Speech and Meanings. Have you ever become so engrossed in a book or story that you can almost smell what the character is smelling or feel what they are feeling?

This happens when the author has made good use of descriptive language. You too can inspire your readers in this way with a little understanding of how descriptive language is used.

The four most common forms of descriptive language are adjectives, adverbs, similes, and metaphors:. Adjectives are words that describe what you can sense about a noun including sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and emotion. For example, an elephant eating grass could be described using adjectives as follows: The huge sight elephant sat in the warm touch sunshine contentedly emotion crunching sound the sweet taste fragrant smell grass.

Adverbs are words that modify verbs. Some examples of adverbs are smoothly, destructively, always, very, today, and yesterday.