tapinosis
- noun
- /ˌtæpɪˈnoʊsɪs/
- Literature
:
tapinosis
- Her description of the major setback as simply 'a small hiccup' was a clear example of tapinosis.
Examples
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The politician's use of tapinosis downplayed the significance of the economic crisis.
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Her speech employed tapinosis by referring to a catastrophic event as 'a slight inconvenience.'
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Literary critics often identify tapinosis in works that use understatement for effect.
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His use of tapinosis made the situation seem trivial.
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The author employed tapinosis to downplay the tragedy.
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In his speech, the author used tapinosis by calling the war 'a little disagreement.'
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The comedian's jokes often rely on tapinosis to make serious topics seem less important.
Synonyms
70
5.6
Saying something in a way that makes it seem less important, serious, or bad than it really is
6
5.3
Make something seem less important than it really is
1
7.1
Making something seem less important or serious than it is
Mentioning something briefly while pretending to ignore it draws attention
To pretend not to mention something while actually making people notice it
A way of bringing up something by saying you will not talk about it
Saying you will not talk about something to draw attention to it
Briefly mention something while saying you will not give the important details
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
tapinosis = tapino + osis
The element 'tapino-' is a non‑productive Greek combining form not recognizable as an independent English word, and '-osis' is a technical noun-forming suffix, so an average learner cannot derive the rhetorical sense from the parts.
Etymology
Tapinosis comes from a Greek root tapein- meaning 'low' or 'humble'. A helpful way to remember it is to think of 'humbling' something by calling it small or unimportant, so tapinosis means deliberately making something seem less serious than it really is.