What is the difference between figurative and literal language?

Question

Figurative language is how you say something without actually stating it. Literal language is more academic and straightforward, your teachers will most likely love you for it!

Answer 1

Literal language is language that is meant to be taken literally. What is said is exactly what is meant. This kind of language is easier to translate into other languages because there is no idiomatic component to consider. Some examples are: "The leaves are green," "I miss my mom," and "You should never end a sentence with a preposition." Figurative language is much more creative, and tends to be used more in poetic writing. Figurative writing can include hyperbole, metaphors/similes, idioms, and even sarcasm. Some examples include: "The leaves are as green as Kermit the Frog," My mom is the best thing since sliced bread," and "Ending a sentence with a preposition is the worst thing you can do."

Answer 2

Literal means what you said is what you meant. The sun is hot.

Figurative language is the way people speak and write that makes language beautiful. Sometimes it is difficult to describe something, especially if the person you're talking to has never seen it or experienced it. So, we have to use figurative language to convey that thing in a way that others can understand, if only to a small degree. For example, try to describe a particularly beautiful sunset. You could say, "It was really really really pretty. " or you could say "The colors were like a ripe peach, fresh off the tree." Here, there is a reference, a ripe peach, and the reader can likely imagine what that looks like. Then, the reader can "see" what you saw better than in the "really really really" sentence. Figurative language is how our mind and mouth express ideas beyond the literal.