Personification Worksheet 3rd Grade

Print worksheet gives 8 sentences: circle personification or plain under each.

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Made at homeroomtools.comRead each sentence. Circle the word that fits.1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.PersonificationThe waves washed over my toes.personificationplainThe piano dreamed of being played again.personificationplainThe toaster cheered when the bread popped up.plainpersonificationThe moon rose above the rooftops.plainpersonificationThe shadows tiptoed across the lawn.personificationplainThe radio cleared its throat and began to sing.plainpersonificationThe piano was unused for years.personificationplainThe lighthouse shone its beam toward the boats.plainpersonification
Made at homeroomtools.comRead each sentence. Circle the word that fits.1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.PersonificationAnswer keyThe waves washed over my toes.personificationplainThe piano dreamed of being played again.personificationplainThe toaster cheered when the bread popped up.plainpersonificationThe moon rose above the rooftops.plainpersonificationThe shadows tiptoed across the lawn.personificationplainThe radio cleared its throat and began to sing.plainpersonificationThe piano was unused for years.personificationplainThe lighthouse shone its beam toward the boats.plainpersonification
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All 146 sentences

Personification or not? 82

  • The alarm clock rang at seven.
  • The alarm clock shouted my name at sunrise.
  • The autumn leaves dropped from the maples in the gusts.
  • The autumn leaves told the wind to slow down.
  • The broom took a nap in the closet.
  • The broom was propped in the closet corner.
  • The bus halted at every crosswalk.
  • The campfire burned all evening.
  • The campfire waved its orange arms.
  • The clock scolded me for being late.
  • The clock showed that I was late.
  • The cold wind chilled my cheeks.
  • The cold wind pinched my cheeks.
  • The daisies nodded hello to the bees.
  • The daisies swayed in the breeze.
  • The door grumbled about its rusty hinges.
  • The door had rusty hinges.
  • The flowers begged for a drink of water.
  • The fog covered the bridge.
  • The fog wrapped its arms around the bridge.
  • The greedy vacuum cleaner begged for more crumbs.
  • The headlights lit up the fog.
  • The headlights stared into the fog.
  • The kettle heated up on the burner.
Show all 146 sentences (122 more)

Personification or not?, continued

  • The kettle sang a cheerful tune.
  • The kite flew past the birds.
  • The kite teased the birds as it flew by.
  • The leaves blew across the yard.
  • The leaves danced across the yard.
  • The lighthouse shone its beam toward the boats.
  • The lighthouse stood guard and worried about the boats.
  • The mailbox is at the end of the lane.
  • The mailbox waited patiently for a letter.
  • The moon peeked over the rooftops and winked.
  • The moon rose above the rooftops.
  • The mountain wore a white hat and frowned at the hikers.
  • My pencil broke in the middle of a word.
  • My pencil refused to write another word.
  • The ocean argued with the rocky shore all night.
  • The ocean crashed against the rocky shore all night.
  • The old computer thought hard about my question.
  • The old computer took a minute to load the page.
  • The old stairs complained under my feet.
  • The old stairs creaked under my feet.
  • The piano dreamed of being played again.
  • The piano was unused for years.
  • The potted flowers had dry soil.
  • The puddles giggled when the children jumped in.
  • The puddles splashed when the children jumped in.
  • The radio cleared its throat and began to sing.
  • The radio crackled and then played a song.
  • The rain fell against the window.
  • The rain tapped a secret message on the window.
  • The river flowed through the valley.
  • The river sang a lullaby to the valley.
  • The shadows grew longer across the lawn.
  • The shadows tiptoed across the lawn.
  • Snow capped the peak above the hikers.
  • Snow lay on every roof in the town.
  • The snow tucked the town into bed.
  • The stars twinkled above the campers.
  • The stars winked at the campers.
  • The storm lasted all night.
  • The storm threw a tantrum all night.
  • The sun smiled down on the picnic.
  • Sunlight warmed the picnic blanket.
  • The thunder grumbled about being woken up.
  • The thunder rumbled in the distance.
  • The tired bus sighed at every stop.
  • The toaster cheered when the bread popped up.
  • The toaster popped up two slices of bread.
  • The trees swayed as the geese flew over.
  • The trees waved goodbye to the geese.
  • The tulips opened on the first warm day.
  • The tulips opened their arms to greet the sun.
  • The vacuum cleaner picked up the crumbs.
  • The vines grew up the garden wall.
  • The vines hugged the garden wall.
  • The waves tickled my toes.
  • The waves washed over my toes.
  • The wind blew through the pines.
  • The wind whispered secrets through the pines.

What acts like a person? 64

  • The apples blushed on the branch above the ladder. What acts like a person? ___ apples, branch, ladder
  • The balloon said goodbye to the fair and the ticket booth. What acts like a person? ___ balloon, booth, fair
  • The bell in the tower called the town to the square. What acts like a person? ___ bell, square, tower
  • The books on the shelf called to me from the corner of the room. What acts like a person? ___ books, room, shelf
  • The broom sulked in the closet behind the coats. What acts like a person? ___ broom, closet, coats
  • The bus yawned and opened its doors at the corner by the bank. What acts like a person? ___ bank, bus, corner
  • The calendar nagged me from the wall above the desk. What acts like a person? ___ calendar, desk, wall
  • The camera loved the kites in the sky above the beach. What acts like a person? ___ beach, camera, kites
  • The campfire told stories over the sticks and the marshmallows. What acts like a person? ___ campfire, marshmallows, sticks
  • The candle bowed politely to the cake on the table. What acts like a person? ___ cake, candle, table
  • The chimney coughed smoke over the roof and the yard. What acts like a person? ___ chimney, roof, yard
  • The clock on the wall scolded the unmade bed. What acts like a person? ___ bed, clock, wall
  • The clouds marched across the sky above the barn and the silo. What acts like a person? ___ barn, clouds, silo
  • The crayons argued in the box on the top shelf. What acts like a person? ___ box, crayons, shelf
  • The daffodils trumpeted the news of spring across the lawn and the path. What acts like a person? ___ daffodils, lawn, path
  • The dishwasher grumbled about the pots and the pans. What acts like a person? ___ dishwasher, pans, pots
  • The elevator sighed and carried the boxes to the roof. What acts like a person? ___ boxes, elevator, roof
  • The engine cleared its throat and pulled the train out of the station. What acts like a person? ___ engine, station, train
  • The flowers in the vase thanked the rain on the window. What acts like a person? ___ flowers, rain, vase
  • The fog crept in on tiptoe and hugged the boats in the harbor. What acts like a person? ___ boats, fog, harbor
  • The frost drew pictures on the window above the sink. What acts like a person? ___ frost, sink, window
  • The garden hose took a long nap on the grass by the shed. What acts like a person? ___ grass, hose, shed
  • The hat on the hook waited for winter beside the scarf and the coat. What acts like a person? ___ coat, hat, scarf
  • The hill wore a scarf of mist above the farm and the creek. What acts like a person? ___ creek, farm, hill
  • The ivy climbed the tower and peeked in the window. What acts like a person? ___ ivy, tower, window
  • The kettle sang to the cups on the shelf. What acts like a person? ___ cups, kettle, shelf
  • The kite teased the gulls above the pier. What acts like a person? ___ gulls, kite, pier
  • The lamp watched over my desk and my open book. What acts like a person? ___ book, desk, lamp
  • The lighthouse worried about the ships in the storm. What acts like a person? ___ lighthouse, ships, storm
  • The mailbox cheered when a letter slid through its slot. What acts like a person? ___ letter, mailbox, slot
  • The moon followed our canoe and smiled at the lake. What acts like a person? ___ canoe, lake, moon
  • The morning tapped me on the shoulder through the curtain and the blinds. What acts like a person? ___ blinds, curtain, morning
  • The mountain frowned at the clouds over the village. What acts like a person? ___ clouds, mountain, village
  • The night pulled a blanket over the town and the hills. What acts like a person? ___ hills, night, town
  • The ocean invited the surfers past the rocks and the pier. What acts like a person? ___ ocean, pier, rocks
  • The old house remembered every footstep on its stairs and porch. What acts like a person? ___ house, porch, stairs
  • The pencil on my desk was tired of writing in the notebook. What acts like a person? ___ desk, notebook, pencil
  • The piano in the hall missed the songs of last winter. What acts like a person? ___ hall, piano, songs
  • The puddle giggled under the boots and the umbrella. What acts like a person? ___ boots, puddle, umbrella
  • The radio cleared its throat before the song about the train. What acts like a person? ___ radio, song, train
  • The rain drummed its fingers on the roof of the shed. What acts like a person? ___ rain, roof, shed
  • The refrigerator hummed a happy tune beside the stove and the sink. What acts like a person? ___ refrigerator, sink, stove
  • The river told the stones an old story under the bridge. What acts like a person? ___ bridge, river, stones
  • The scissors refused to cut the ribbon on the box. What acts like a person? ___ box, ribbon, scissors
  • The shoes by the door begged for a walk in the park. What acts like a person? ___ door, park, shoes
  • The snow tucked the cars and the porch into bed. What acts like a person? ___ cars, porch, snow
  • The snowflakes danced past the lamp and the gate. What acts like a person? ___ gate, lamp, snowflakes
  • The stars gossiped above the roof of the cabin. What acts like a person? ___ cabin, roof, stars
  • The storm threw a tantrum over the barn and the pond. What acts like a person? ___ barn, pond, storm
  • The stream chattered happily past the mill and the meadow. What acts like a person? ___ meadow, mill, stream
  • The stubborn door argued with my key in the lock. What acts like a person? ___ door, key, lock
  • The suitcase groaned about the books and the boots inside. What acts like a person? ___ books, boots, suitcase
  • The sun patted the tents on the head beside the river. What acts like a person? ___ river, sun, tents
  • The sunflower turned to wave at the bees over the fence. What acts like a person? ___ bees, fence, sunflower
  • The teapot bragged about its spout to nobody in the kitchen. What acts like a person? ___ kitchen, spout, teapot
  • The thunder grumbled at the fields and the fence. What acts like a person? ___ fence, fields, thunder
  • The toaster cheered and tossed the bread onto the plate. What acts like a person? ___ bread, plate, toaster
  • The traffic light changed its mind at the corner near the bakery. What acts like a person? ___ bakery, corner, traffic light
  • The trees whispered a secret over the tent and the trail. What acts like a person? ___ tent, trail, trees
  • The truck complained all the way up the hill to the barn. What acts like a person? ___ barn, hill, truck
  • The vines shook hands with the fence along the road. What acts like a person? ___ fence, road, vines
  • The waves wrote their names on the sand near the dock. What acts like a person? ___ dock, sand, waves
  • The wind chimes sang a lullaby to the porch and the yard. What acts like a person? ___ porch, wind chimes, yard
  • The wind stole my hat and laughed as it rolled down the street. What acts like a person? ___ hat, street, wind

How this list was compiled: Written for this page. Personification gives a thing that is not a person a human action, feeling or way of speaking. In the first set sentences come in pairs, one with personification (The leaves danced across the yard) and one plain (The leaves blew across the yard), each tagged with which it is. In the second set every sentence has one thing that acts like a person and two or three other nouns, and the task is to pick the thing. The term follows the Wikipedia article Personification, read 2 October 2026. No sentence is taken from a poem or a book, and no person, brand or character is named. Licence: own work

How it works

Personification gives a thing a human action: the leaves danced, the kettle sang. Each sheet draws 8 of our sentences to label personification or plain; a second set asks which thing in the sentence acts like a person.

Read the full guide

Personification or not?

The sentences were written in pairs. The stars winked at the campers is personification, because winking is something a person does. The stars twinkled above the campers is plain: stars do twinkle. A sheet draws from both halves at random.

What acts like a person?

Pick this set under Set. Each sentence ends with the question and a blank: The clock on the wall scolded the unmade bed. Under it stand clock, wall and bed, and the child circles the thing given the human action.

  • Ask: could this thing really do that? A door cannot grumble, so The door grumbled is personification.
  • The grade is our suggestion: grades 3 to 6.

Questions and answers

What is personification?

A figure of speech that gives something that is not a person a human action, feeling or voice: the wind whispered, the sun smiled, the old stairs complained.

What grade learns personification?

The Common Core first names it in grade 6, where students interpret figures of speech such as personification (L.6.5a). Many classes meet it sooner with other figurative language, so we suggest these sheets for grades 3 to 6.

Is a talking animal personification?

Stories where animals talk and dress like people are usually called anthropomorphism. To keep one clear answer, our sentences give human actions only to objects, plants, places and weather, never to animals.

Is there an answer key?

Yes. It prints as the last page with the right answer circled under each sentence. Uncheck Add an answer key as the last page under More options to leave it off.

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