Similes Similes are comparisons that show how two things that are not alike in most ways are similar in one important way.
Similes are a way to describe something.
Authors use them to make their writing more interesting or entertaining. Playing chess with Ashley is like trying to outsmart a computer. The point is that Ashley can think in a powerful manner that resembles the way a computer operates, not that she is like a computer in any other way. His temper was as explosive as a volcano. His temper is being compared to a volcano in that it can be sudden and violent.