A simile is a comparison that uses like or as to show a likeness between two different things. Poets use similes to make an image, feeling, or idea easier to picture by linking it to something familiar.
Example
Her laugh was bright as winter sun,
quick as sparrows lifting from the fence.
The dark came like a closing hand
and held the yard in silence.
The milk tasted like pickles.
Related Definitions
[n] a figure of speech that expresses a resemblance between things of different kinds (usually formed with `like' or `as')