SIMILES

Similes are comparisons that show how two things that are not alike in most ways are similar in one important way. Similes are a way to describe something. Authors use them to make their writing more interesting or entertaining. Similes use the words "as" or "like" to make the connection between the two things that are being compared. Examples: 1. Playing chess with Ashley is **like** trying to outsmart a computer.

The activity "playing chess with Ashley" is being compared to "trying to outsmart a computer." The point is that Ashley can think in a powerful manner that resembles the way a computer operates, not that she is like a computer in any other way. 2. His temper was **as** explosive **as** a volcano. His temper is being compared to a volcano in that it can be sudden and violent. --

"They sat in the dancing flames with the pillars of the house standing tall behind them  like trees of the forest." [**JRR Tolkien**, //The Hobbit//,