| “when the battle lost and won” | paradox; second witch |
| “fair is foul, and foul is fair”; | couplet all of the witches |
| “doubtfully it stood as two spent swimmers, that do cling together and choke their art” | simile Captain |
| “Yes; as sparrows eagles, or the hare the lion “ | simile Caption |
| “I’ll see it done. What he hath lost, noble Macbeth hath won” | couplets; first sentence- Ross, second- King |
| “So foul and fair a day I have not seen” | paradox Macbeth |
| “Hail! Hail! Hail” after telling Macbeth he will be king | equivocation; witches |
| “Lesser than Macbeth, and greater” | paradox; witch |
| , ” What can the devil speak true?” | it aligns the witches with evil; banquo |
| “The thane of Cawdor lives: why do you dress me in borrowed robes?” | metaphor; Macbeth |
| “Glamis, and Thane of Cawdor: the greatest is behind” | paradox; Macbeth |
| “Come what come may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day” | couplet; Macbeth |
| ” I have begun to plant thee, and will labor to make thee full of growing” | metaphor; king |
| Who is the prince of Cumberland? | Malcom |
| “The prince of Cumberland! that is a step…” | metaphor; macbeth |
| “Stars, hide your fires” | apostrophe; macbeth |
| “Let not light see my black and deep desires: the eye wink at the hand” | synecdoche; macbeth |
| “Hie thee hither, that I may pour my spirits in thine ear, and chastise with the valor of my tongue” | synecdoche; lady macbeth |
| “Come, you spirits that tend o mortal thoughts” | apostrophe; lady macbeth |
| “Come, thick night, and pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell” | apostrophe; lady macbeth |
| “Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark” | apostrophe; lady macbeth |
| “Your face, my thane, is as a book where men may read strange matters” | simile; lady macbeth |
| “look like th’ innocent flower, but be the serpent under’ t” | antithesis; lady macbeth |
| “Only look up clear. To alter favor ever is to fear” | couplet; lady macbeth |
| “.. the heaven’s breath smells wooingly here” | dramatic irony and personification; Banquo |
| “A pity, like a naked newborn babe striding the blast” | simile; macbeth |
| “Was the hope drunk wherein you dressed yourself?” | personification; lady macbeth |
| “We fail? But screw your courage to the sticking plate and we’ll not fail” | metaphor; lady macbeth |
| “False face must hide what the false heart doth know” | parallelism; lady macbeth |
Literary terms for Macbeth and examples from the text
September 1, 2019