English · Figurative Language
Simile Matcher
Tie each opening to the ending it always goes with. One ending is a spare.
Free to use and free to share. There is no sign-up, no score, and nothing a child does here is recorded or sent anywhere. What you may do with it, in full.
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Why this works
Figurative language works by borrowing a picture everybody already shares. A simile keeps the two things apart and links them with like or as, so "as busy as a bee" says the person is like a bee, not a bee. A metaphor drops the link and says one thing simply is the other, so "a blanket of snow" claims the snow is a blanket, which is how you know it is a metaphor rather than a simile. The test is quick: look for like or as, and if it is there you have a simile, and if the sentence just declares one thing to be another you have a metaphor. Choosing the right ending matters too, because these comparisons are fixed phrases: readers hear the whole thing the moment you start it.
Helping a child through Simile Matcher
Hints, least revealing first
- These are phrases people already say. Read each opening aloud and listen for the ending your ear expects.
- The comparison has to make sense: pick the creature or thing that is famous for exactly that quality.
- Two of these use as ... as, which makes them similes. One says a thing IS something else, which makes it a metaphor.
When they finish it: “Every rope tied!”
11+ skill this exercise practises
It has its own page, with a worked example on it.
All english 11+ skillsYou can reuse this. Here is exactly how far that goes
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Embed this exercise
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Simile Matcher practises one skill. English has 41 of them
A free diagnostic covers every english skill and the other three subjects, and comes back with a shortlist rather than a list.