Which figure of speech is demonstrated by the phrase 'The wind whispered through the trees'?

• A. Metaphor
• B. Personification
• C. Simile
• D. Hyperbole

Answer: (B)

Giving human qualities to something nonhuman is being tested here. By describing the wind as if it can whisper, the sentence attributes a human action—speaking softly—to a natural element. Whispering implies voice, intention, and communication, all traits people have, which the wind cannot literally possess. That shift is what makes it personification: nature is given life-like, humanized behavior to create a more vivid image and mood.

This isn’t a simile because there’s no like or as linking the wind to something else, and it isn’t a metaphor that directly renames wind as something else. It’s also not hyperbole; the image stays gentle and believable rather than exaggerated. The effect is to make the scene feel intimate and alive, as if the wind itself is a quiet presence in the moment.