What Is Hyperbole?
When speaking casually, we will use various different language tools to help us get our point across clearly. These tools will often involve phrases that are not supposed to be taken literally and the vast majority of people will know that and take them as they were intended.
One example of such a tool is hyperbole. Hyperbole is when we speak or write in exaggerated terms to help emphasize something to other people. Some are really quite common and used regularly in day-to-day language. Here are a few examples of commonly used hyperbole, what they mean, and how they are usually used.
1. Eat a Horse
Every now and then, we get moments when we have left it too long from one meal to the next. This can cause us to become very hungry and it can be a very unpleasant sensation. At least most of us can be confident that there is food coming at some point, but not everybody can be as confident. When we are very hungry, we are often more than happy to let people know about it, perhaps sometimes to complain to a person that is responsible for our hunger. We will often complain that we are so hungry that we could eat a horse. The reality is, of course, that no person can eat a horse. At least not in one sitting.
2. Next Week Will Never Come
When there is a big event approaching that we are excited about, we will often keep a closer eye than usual on how time is progressing. We might even say that we are watching every minute, which itself is hyperbole. When we do focus on how long something is taking, though, it often feels as though it is taking longer than usual. This might lead somebody to say “Next week is never going to come.” This is just not true.
Next week will come, it has to, even if time does appear to be dragging on for you. If you are experiencing this then you should try to find something to focus on, and it will come around in no time at all (thats another hyperbole).
3. Weighs a Ton
Many of us don’t like heavy lifting, and being dragged around shopping with the family carrying bags is something that a lot of people don’t like. Even people that do enjoy shopping are likely to start losing enthusiasm as the day goes on and the bags get heavier. Toward the end of the day, in particular, the weight of shopping bags will become too much for a lot of people.
Struggling with the weight of the bags, we might be compelled to say that the bags “weigh a ton.” Of course, they don’t weigh a ton or even close to that. If they did, you would not be able to lift them at all.
4. Impossible Puzzle
Puzzles can be a lot of fun. The challenge of puzzles can be enough to keep us entertained for hours on end and there is often a real sense of achievement when we manage to complete one. It is almost inevitable that we will come to a particular puzzle that we struggle with, however, and this can be very frustrating. It will often be tempting to give up on a difficult puzzle, but another part of us just wants to finally overcome the challenge.
When voicing our frustration, we might sometimes exclaim that the puzzle is impossible. This is unlikely to be the case, however, and the vast majority can be solved even if you are struggling to solve them personally.
5. Worst Day of My Life
Things don’t always go perfectly for us. We can experience problems with family, with relationships, in work, and so on. It will often also be the case that none of it is our fault. Regardless of fault, we will need to deal with these situations the best we can when they happen. Such situations can be very difficult to deal with and they can be very upsetting.
It is not uncommon for people to remark that they are having the worst day of their life when something is going wrong. While it is possible that its the worst day of their life so far, it is usually the case that they have experienced far worse days in the past.
6. Foot Falling Off
Pain is unpleasant. It is supposed to be because pain is intended to make us stop whatever it is that is hurting us, and it encourages us to protect damaged parts of the body so they can heal. This unfortunately means that pain can linger, and it can be very difficult to bear.
Somebody that is struggling with an injured foot, for example, might exclaim that their foot is hurting them so much that it is going to fall off. This is very unlikely to happen as body parts don’t just fall away because they are hurting. The pain will likely subside eventually, leaving the foot just where it is supposed to be.
7. As Tall as a House
Some people are taller than others. Most people still stay within a certain height range, but some people can be significantly taller to the point where they really stand out from the crowd. Such a person is likely to draw glances from other people, and some might note that they are as tall as a house.
Nobody is really as tall as a house, not even the tallest of people, unless it is a very small house. Some very tall people might be as tall as a bungalow, but it is quite clear that the term is referring to a standard-sized house.
8. As Skinny as a Toothpick
People come in many different shapes and sizes. Some are fat, some are skinny, and most are somewhere in between. It is often quite noticeable when a person is particularly skinny and somebody might choose to remark that they are as skinny as a toothpick. Again, this is just not true.
Nobody is as skinny as a toothpick, its just not possible. The term is quite clearly an exaggeration that is used to make a point. Try to remember that it is not good to refer to peoples size anyway. You run the risk of upsetting somebody if you are not careful.
9. Going to Kill Me
All kids have, at some point in their lives, done something that they should not have done. Some adults have as well for that matter. Depending on what they have done, there is likely to be somebody that they have to answer to. In many cases, that person is dad.
Kids in particular that have misbehaved and know they are in big trouble might exclaim that their father is “going to kill them” when they get home. It is highly unlikely that their father will really kill them, no matter what they have done. It just means that they are going to be very cross and will likely chastise their child, or whoever else is responsible.
10. A Smile a Mile Wide
A smile is a definite give away that somebody is happy. In many instances it can be great to see, especially if they are somebody that is close to you. Even seeing a big smile on a stranger can be positively infectious. If somebody does have a big smile, it might be said that they have “a smile a mile wide.” Nobody has a smile that wide. Even the largest human smile ever will only ever have been a fraction of that.
It is silly to think that a person’s smile is genuinely that wide but we are not supposed to think that anyway. It is simply hyperbole that is intended to highlight that the person in question looked very happy indeed.
