What does personifying mean?
Personifying is an adjective describing the act or result of giving human qualities to something that is not human. It is commonly applied to language and imagery: a writer might describe a storm as angry, the sea as restless, or a building as refusing to be moved. In visual art and storytelling, personification can mean presenting an object, animal, place, or abstract idea as though it were a person. The word is useful when discussing how figurative language makes the nonhuman world more vivid, accessible, and emotionally expressive. It can also carry a mildly critical implication, suggesting that human attributes are being imposed on something that does not possess them, especially in commentary on anthropomorphism. In general use, “personifying” names a recognizable technique of figurative expression.
adjectiveDescribing language, imagery, or a treatment that gives nonhuman things human qualities, emotions, or actions. It can also mean portraying a nonhuman entity as if it were a person.
- Giving nonhuman things human qualities, emotions, or actions.
- Portraying a nonhuman entity as if it were a person.
"The poet's personifying description of the river as a restless traveller gives the landscape emotional depth."
"The characteristically personifying treatment of the moon makes the night scene feel mysterious and alive."
"Her personifying account of how the old building resisted the renovation humanizes the process without anthropomorphizing the structure too literally."
Personifying turns the world around us into a cast of characters: storms can rage, forests can whisper, and ships can struggle at sea.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does personifying come from?
The word derives from the verb personify, which was formed in the early 19th century from the Latin persona, meaning “mask” or “character,” and the suffix -fy, meaning “to make.” The related noun personification was already in use by the end of the 18th century. Its meaning developed from the idea of representing a nonhuman thing in human form to the modern sense of attributing human qualities to it. The Latin root also underlies related English words such as personal and personality.
Related word forms
How personifying is actually used
The term is formal and analytical, commonly used in discussions of literature, art, rhetoric, and design. It is also used attributively, as in “personifying language.”
Easily confused with personifying
Personifying means giving nonhuman things human qualities, whereas personal means relating to an individual or private life.