Imagery

Imagery is descriptive language that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, touch, taste and smell) to make an experience vivid. It includes literal description and figurative devices such as metaphor and simile. Strong imagery lets a reader feel they are present in a scene.

That is why it matters both for analysing a writer's craft and for producing effective descriptive writing.

Analysing imagery is central to the reading paper and to Literature. In descriptive composition, controlled sensory imagery is one of the clearest ways to earn marks for content and style.

"The market smelled of frying oil, ripe mangoes and diesel" builds a place through three senses at once.

Notice which senses a passage draws on and what mood the images build together. In your own description, layer a few precise sensory details rather than piling on adjectives. Try describing an ordinary place, such as a kitchen or a bus stop, with three senses in three sentences.

This builds the habit of precise, layered imagery under time pressure.

You may also find Analysing imagery and Analysing a dramatic scene useful. Next, visit our skills guides for IGCSE English to see terms like this used in real answers. Our IGCSE English tuition page explains how lessons run. When you are ready, the paid one-hour trial is the first step.