Question

Identify the figure of speech used in the sentence: "Death lays his icy hand on kings."

• A. Personification
• B. Exclamation
• C. Simile
• D. Anticlimax

Hint:

Notice that "Death" is given a hand and performs a human action.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Read what the sentence actually does to "Death".
Death is not a person, yet the sentence gives it a hand and an action, "lays his icy hand on kings", as if Death were a human being.

Step 2: Rule out the other options.
There is no comparison word like "as" or "like", so it cannot be a simile, which rules out option C. The sentence is calm and descriptive, not a sudden cry of feeling, so it is not an exclamation, ruling out option B. An anticlimax needs a drop from something big to something silly or small, and this line builds up seriousness instead, so option D is wrong too.

Step 3: Match the remaining option to the definition.
Giving a non human thing, here Death, human qualities like a hand and an action is exactly what personification means.

Final Answer:
Death is treated as a person with a hand, so this line is personification. \[ \boxed{\text{Personification}} \]