Melanie walked out onto the stage, and her stomach dropped like a free-falling elevator. She crept slowly over to the podium and bent the microphone toward her mouth, like the straw in her pink lemonade. She gathered up all of her courage and began to speak, her voice an impostor as it boomed through the microphone. She flinched at its unfamiliarity and scanned the room for her mother's face.

Question

Melanie walked out onto the stage, and her stomach dropped like a free-falling elevator. She crept slowly over to the podium and bent the microphone toward her mouth, like the straw in her pink lemonade. She gathered up all of her courage and began to speak, her voice an impostor as it boomed through the microphone. She flinched at its unfamiliarity and scanned the room for her mother's face.

what are two examples of figurative language in this passage and what do they mean

Answer 1

Two examples of figurative language in this passage are:

1. "Her stomach dropped like a free-falling elevator." - This is a simile, comparing Melanie's stomach dropping to the feeling of an elevator descending rapidly. It conveys the sudden and intense nervousness that Melanie experiences.

2. "She bent the microphone toward her mouth, like the straw in her pink lemonade." - This is a simile that compares how Melanie positions the microphone to drinking from a straw in her pink lemonade. It suggests that she handles the microphone delicately and with caution, just as one would with a straw in a refreshing drink.

Answer 2

what does the phrase "her voice an imposter as it boomed through the microphone" indicate?

Answer 3

The phrase "her voice an impostor as it boomed through the microphone" uses personification and metaphor to suggest that Melanie's voice sounds unfamiliar and out of place as it is amplified by the microphone. It conveys the idea that speaking publicly feels unnatural to her, as if her own voice is pretending to be something more powerful and authoritative than it actually is. This emphasizes her nervousness and lack of confidence in that moment.