Simile: GCSE English Definition

What is a simile?

In GCSE English Literature and GCSE English Language, a simile is a literary device that is used to compare two things that share a common quality, using the words “like” or “as”. 

Why do writers use similes?

A simile is an example of figurative language, which helps a writer add more meaning or  non-literal meaning to the thing they are describing. 

Writers use similes to enrich their description, by highlighting its specific qualities or adding extra meaning to the thing they are describing. They do this to create a specific effect for their readers: it can add an emotional quality to their writing, or it can make the description more vivid or engaging.

Examples of similes

“As cold as ice”

This simple simile suggests something is cold because the thing it’s being compared to — “ice” — is very cold.

“Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent underneath it” — Lady Macbeth, Act 1, Scene 5

In the first act of Macbeth, Lady Macbeth commands her husband to look like an “innocent flower” when King Duncan arrives at their castle. This simile suggests he should look pleasant and totally unthreatening to his king (just like a flower), despite his plan to murder him.

Revision resources to ace your exams

For study guides on how to analyse similes in literary texts, and how best to include similes in your own creative writing, check out our detailed revision notes. All our notes are course-specific, so everything you’ll need to ace your exams is in one place!

GCSE English literature revision notes 

GCSE English language revision notes

For a comprehensive glossary covering all the best literary techniques you could ever need (including alliteration, assonance, hyperbole, juxtaposition, metaphor, onomatopoeia, oxymoron, pathetic fallacy, personification and more than a hundred more), check out our list of top literary devices, complete with student-friendly definitions.