Spot an alliteration, which is a repetition of the same letter or sound in nearby words. For example, as quoted on Cerritos College Renee Decter's website, President John F. Kennedy said in his inaugural speech, "Let us go forth to lead the land we love." Other examples are "wild weekend at West Vancouver" or "How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if it could chuck wood?"
Identify an allusion. According to Georgia Perimeter College's Dunwoody Learning & Tutoring Center, allusion is a reference to a historical event, literary event or person that resembles very closely the subject under discussion. For example, "He finally met his Waterloo" or "This is the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression."
Look for a climax, which is a sequence of words and phrases arranged in order of ascending power. Decter notes that the last emphatic word in one phrase is often the first emphatic word in the next. For example, "My priorities are to my family, my community and my country," where "family," "community" and "country" are placed in increasing order of importance.
Find instances of hyperbole, which is the use of exaggeration to make a point, often humorously. An everyday example is "I am so hungry that I could eat a horse." Politicians use hyperbole frequently to make a point: for example, "If the deficit is not reduced, the United States is going to become a third-world country." Other examples are "leap tall buildings in one stride," "walk on water" and "I am on top of the world."
Detect uses of imagery, which is the use of visual images to create a lasting impression. For example, President Ronald Reagan's speechwriter Peggy Noonan paraphrased aviator and poet John Gillespie Magee Jr. for this powerful imagery to commemorate the Challenger disaster victims: "slipped the surly bonds of earth ... and touched the face of God."
Spot an expression of irony, which means different -- sometimes opposite -- than the literal meaning. Irony is often used for humor and contrast. For example, "Joe has finally united his party: they all want him to resign as leader"; or from William Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar," as quoted by Decter, Mark Antony's repeated use of the phrase "For Brutus is an honorable man" in his speech at Caesar's funeral, when he actually means "Brutus is a traitor."
Search for a metaphor, which is the substitution of a figurative for a literal term. For example, "She is a doll."
Find a simile, which is a direct comparison linking two nouns with different meanings. For example, "His mind is as sharp as a knife."