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Q&A When is using a simile better than giving a literal description?

Definition of simile : a figure of speech comparing two unlike things that is often introduced by like or as (as in cheeks like roses) Similes are nice tools that every narrator has (eve...

3 answers  ·  posted 5y ago by Liquid‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

#4: Attribution notice removed by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-13T11:56:50Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/43866
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T11:27:43Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/43866
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by (deleted user) · 2019-12-08T11:27:43Z (almost 5 years ago)
> _Definition of simile_
> 
> : a figure of speech comparing two unlike things that is often introduced by like or as (as in cheeks like roses)

Similes are nice tools that every narrator has (even if I'd like to focus on creative-writing for this question). Yet, similes are far from being fail proof. Sometimes they are shorthands, tokens that the writer can conveniently throw in instead of an accurate description. Sometimes they are ill-suited, or they compare unrelated things, or again they pull the reader out of the story.

So what are the elements of a good simile? Or, in other words:

## When is using a simile better than giving a literal description?

**Related:**

- [How to use metaphors and similes in a good dose?](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/42889/how-to-use-metaphors-and-similes-in-a-good-dose)
- [Using senses and similes in descriptions](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/7578/using-senses-and-similes-in-descriptions)
- [Ways of presenting a metaphor/simile/analogy](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/8554/ways-of-presenting-a-metaphor-simile-analogy)
#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2019-03-21T15:25:38Z (over 5 years ago)
Original score: 5