anecdoteExample: Five yearsago, I went to thestore and met someclowns. Thoseclowns gave me theadvice I am sharingwith you now.understatementExample: Theerupting volcanowas a littleproblem for theneighboring city.anaphorismExample: Apenny savedis a pennyearned.cacophonyExample: Thegnashing ofteeth andscreeching ofbats kept meawake.analogyExample: Life islike a box ofchocolates: younever knowwhat you aregoing to get.parodyExample: If EdgarAllen Poe had writtenthis speech, it mighthave opened with“Here we are, weakand weary, gatheredon a Monday dreary.”punExample: Thefarmer tried to gethis cows to getalong, but theyinsisted on havinga beef with eachother.climaxExample:Look at thesky! It’s abird! A plane!Superman!antithesisExample:No pain,no gain.colloquialismExample: Herein Philly, welove to eathoagies and allkinds of tastyjawns.asyndetonExample:Get in,cause adistraction,get out.Free!ironyExample: Ashleysaid it was abeautiful daywhile drying offfrom thedrenching rain.oxymoronExample:The treatyled to aviolentpeace.parallelismExample: Foolme once,shame on you.Fool me twice,shame on me.parenthesisExample: Theaudience, or atleast the payingmembers of theaudience, enjoyedthe show.personificationExample: Thebeautiful valleyspread itsarms out andembraced us.consonanceExample:Mike likesIke’s bike.paradoxExample:Youth iswasted onthe young.meiosisExample: We mustput an end to thispeculiar institution.(“Peculiarinstitution” is aeuphemism forslavery.)chiasmusExample:Dog ownersown dogsand cats owncat owners.anaphoraExample: Icame, Isaw, Iconquered.rhetoricalquestionExample: Can wereally know what ourplace in the universeis? We have askedourselves thisquestion formillennia.euphemismExample:The baseballstruck him ina sensitivearea.metanoiaExample: We’llwork on it onSunday. No, let’smake that Monday—it’s the weekendafter, all!syllogismExample: Dogsare mammals.Biscuit is a dog.Therefore,Biscuit is amammal.synecdocheExample: Thecommander hadan army of 10,000swords. (Thepeople holding theswords werethere, too.)connotationExample:This is ahouse, but Iwant ahome.apostropheExample: Youhave made afool out of mefor the lasttime, washingmachine!metaphorExample:He was awolf amongsheep.onomatopoeiaExample:The thunderboomed andthe lightningcrashed.assonanceExample:She and Leesee the beesin the tree.epithetExample: Youneed to listento me and notClueless Kevinover there.alliterationExample:She sellsseashells bythe seashore.expletiveExample: Theeggs were not,in any sense ofthe word,delicious.simileExample: Itwas as hotas a desertthis morning.satireExample: WhenSenator Jacksonsaid “numbersdon’t lie,” he forgotthat his first namewasn’t “Numbers.”eponymExample: Heis theLeBronJames ofchess.metonymyExample: Heloved musicfrom the cradle(birth) to thegrave (death).hyperboleExample:The plateexplodedinto a millionpieces.allusionExample:Finishing hismemoir washis whitewhale.sarcasmExample: Oh,yeah, he is agreat guy. Agreat guy whotook the lastslice of pizza.anecdoteExample: Five yearsago, I went to thestore and met someclowns. Thoseclowns gave me theadvice I am sharingwith you now.understatementExample: Theerupting volcanowas a littleproblem for theneighboring city.anaphorismExample: Apenny savedis a pennyearned.cacophonyExample: Thegnashing ofteeth andscreeching ofbats kept meawake.analogyExample: Life islike a box ofchocolates: younever knowwhat you aregoing to get.parodyExample: If EdgarAllen Poe had writtenthis speech, it mighthave opened with“Here we are, weakand weary, gatheredon a Monday dreary.”punExample: Thefarmer tried to gethis cows to getalong, but theyinsisted on havinga beef with eachother.climaxExample:Look at thesky! It’s abird! A plane!Superman!antithesisExample:No pain,no gain.colloquialismExample: Herein Philly, welove to eathoagies and allkinds of tastyjawns.asyndetonExample:Get in,cause adistraction,get out.Free!ironyExample: Ashleysaid it was abeautiful daywhile drying offfrom thedrenching rain.oxymoronExample:The treatyled to aviolentpeace.parallelismExample: Foolme once,shame on you.Fool me twice,shame on me.parenthesisExample: Theaudience, or atleast the payingmembers of theaudience, enjoyedthe show.personificationExample: Thebeautiful valleyspread itsarms out andembraced us.consonanceExample:Mike likesIke’s bike.paradoxExample:Youth iswasted onthe young.meiosisExample: We mustput an end to thispeculiar institution.(“Peculiarinstitution” is aeuphemism forslavery.)chiasmusExample:Dog ownersown dogsand cats owncat owners.anaphoraExample: Icame, Isaw, Iconquered.rhetoricalquestionExample: Can wereally know what ourplace in the universeis? We have askedourselves thisquestion formillennia.euphemismExample:The baseballstruck him ina sensitivearea.metanoiaExample: We’llwork on it onSunday. No, let’smake that Monday—it’s the weekendafter, all!syllogismExample: Dogsare mammals.Biscuit is a dog.Therefore,Biscuit is amammal.synecdocheExample: Thecommander hadan army of 10,000swords. (Thepeople holding theswords werethere, too.)connotationExample:This is ahouse, but Iwant ahome.apostropheExample: Youhave made afool out of mefor the lasttime, washingmachine!metaphorExample:He was awolf amongsheep.onomatopoeiaExample:The thunderboomed andthe lightningcrashed.assonanceExample:She and Leesee the beesin the tree.epithetExample: Youneed to listento me and notClueless Kevinover there.alliterationExample:She sellsseashells bythe seashore.expletiveExample: Theeggs were not,in any sense ofthe word,delicious.simileExample: Itwas as hotas a desertthis morning.satireExample: WhenSenator Jacksonsaid “numbersdon’t lie,” he forgotthat his first namewasn’t “Numbers.”eponymExample: Heis theLeBronJames ofchess.metonymyExample: Heloved musicfrom the cradle(birth) to thegrave (death).hyperboleExample:The plateexplodedinto a millionpieces.allusionExample:Finishing hismemoir washis whitewhale.sarcasmExample: Oh,yeah, he is agreat guy. Agreat guy whotook the lastslice of pizza.

Rhetorical Devices Bingo - Call List

(Print) Use this randomly generated list as your call list when playing the game. There is no need to say the BINGO column name. Place some kind of mark (like an X, a checkmark, a dot, tally mark, etc) on each cell as you announce it, to keep track. You can also cut out each item, place them in a bag and pull words from the bag.


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  1. Example: Five years ago, I went to the store and met some clowns. Those clowns gave me the advice I am sharing with you now.
    anecdote
  2. Example: The erupting volcano was a little problem for the neighboring city.
    understatement
  3. Example: A penny saved is a penny earned.
    anaphorism
  4. Example: The gnashing of teeth and screeching of bats kept me awake.
    cacophony
  5. Example: Life is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you are going to get.
    analogy
  6. Example: If Edgar Allen Poe had written this speech, it might have opened with “Here we are, weak and weary, gathered on a Monday dreary.”
    parody
  7. Example: The farmer tried to get his cows to get along, but they insisted on having a beef with each other.
    pun
  8. Example: Look at the sky! It’s a bird! A plane! Superman!
    climax
  9. Example: No pain, no gain.
    antithesis
  10. Example: Here in Philly, we love to eat hoagies and all kinds of tasty jawns.
    colloquialism
  11. Example: Get in, cause a distraction, get out.
    asyndeton
  12. Free!
  13. Example: Ashley said it was a beautiful day while drying off from the drenching rain.
    irony
  14. Example: The treaty led to a violent peace.
    oxymoron
  15. Example: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
    parallelism
  16. Example: The audience, or at least the paying members of the audience, enjoyed the show.
    parenthesis
  17. Example: The beautiful valley spread its arms out and embraced us.
    personification
  18. Example: Mike likes Ike’s bike.
    consonance
  19. Example: Youth is wasted on the young.
    paradox
  20. Example: We must put an end to this peculiar institution. (“Peculiar institution” is a euphemism for slavery.)
    meiosis
  21. Example: Dog owners own dogs and cats own cat owners.
    chiasmus
  22. Example: I came, I saw, I conquered.
    anaphora
  23. Example: Can we really know what our place in the universe is? We have asked ourselves this question for millennia.
    rhetorical question
  24. Example: The baseball struck him in a sensitive area.
    euphemism
  25. Example: We’ll work on it on Sunday. No, let’s make that Monday—it’s the weekend after, all!
    metanoia
  26. Example: Dogs are mammals. Biscuit is a dog. Therefore, Biscuit is a mammal.
    syllogism
  27. Example: The commander had an army of 10,000 swords. (The people holding the swords were there, too.)
    synecdoche
  28. Example: This is a house, but I want a home.
    connotation
  29. Example: You have made a fool out of me for the last time, washing machine!
    apostrophe
  30. Example: He was a wolf among sheep.
    metaphor
  31. Example: The thunder boomed and the lightning crashed.
    onomatopoeia
  32. Example: She and Lee see the bees in the tree.
    assonance
  33. Example: You need to listen to me and not Clueless Kevin over there.
    epithet
  34. Example: She sells seashells by the sea shore.
    alliteration
  35. Example: The eggs were not, in any sense of the word, delicious.
    expletive
  36. Example: It was as hot as a desert this morning.
    simile
  37. Example: When Senator Jackson said “numbers don’t lie,” he forgot that his first name wasn’t “Numbers.”
    satire
  38. Example: He is the LeBron James of chess.
    eponym
  39. Example: He loved music from the cradle (birth) to the grave (death).
    metonymy
  40. Example: The plate exploded into a million pieces.
    hyperbole
  41. Example: Finishing his memoir was his white whale.
    allusion
  42. Example: Oh, yeah, he is a great guy. A great guy who took the last slice of pizza.
    sarcasm