Overlapping of the Purposes of Simile in Arabic Language

Abstract

The significance of our research lies in the fact that it addresses the purposes of simile taught to Arabic language students at universities, which could be part of exam questions. They were studied following a descriptive methodology in order to answer a number of questions. What are the purposes of simile in Arabic, and do they overlap? Is there a clear-cut distinction between them? Is it possible to add other purposes other than those included in the books of Arabic rhetoric?

After examining the examples used by the researchers for each one, we found that these purposes may overlap between each other, and that the phrase containing a simile may be useful for clarifying one particular purpose or more. The writer alone cannot determine the purpose of a simile; the recipient (whether a reader or a listener) can also determine its benefits.