Which sentence is an example of personification?

Which sentence is an example of personification?

• A. The sun smiled down on the valley.
• B. The wind blew a strong gust.
• C. The river flowed around the rocks.
• D. The clock ticked loudly.

Answer: (A)

Personification happens when a nonhuman thing is given human traits or actions. The line The sun smiled down on the valley assigns a human action—smiling—to the sun, which isn’t human, and this brings a sense of emotion or intent to the sun. That fit is exactly what personification is. The other lines describe natural movements or sounds without adding human qualities: wind simply moves, the river flows, and a clock just makes its ticking sound. So the sun’s smile is the line that shows personification.

Personification happens when a nonhuman thing is given human traits or actions. The line The sun smiled down on the valley assigns a human action—smiling—to the sun, which isn’t human, and this brings a sense of emotion or intent to the sun. That fit is exactly what personification is. The other lines describe natural movements or sounds without adding human qualities: wind simply moves, the river flows, and a clock just makes its ticking sound. So the sun’s smile is the line that shows personification.