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overstatement

overstatement

13 4.4
Saying something is more important or serious than it really is
  • noun
  • /ˌoʊvərˈsteɪtmənt/
translation icon : exageración
  • She realized her remarks about the competition were an overstatement, as they actually performed quite well.
  • overstatement and exaggeration
  • a gross overstatement

This might be an overstatement, Bagini says, but it is unhappily close to the truth.

Examples

  • Making generalizations about an incredibly heterogeneous popular press leads to overstatement; nevertheless, certain changes can be observed across multiple newspapers.

    Academic text (2004)
  • To say the car raced is a bit of an overstatement; the average speed was just 15 miles per hour.

    Academic text (2007)
  • We called it a movement, which may have been an overstatement.

    Academic text (2014)
  • Although true in one sense, this is an overstatement.

    Academic text (2017)
  • This might be an overstatement, Bagini says, but it is unhappily close to the truth.

  • Wow, that is one of the biggest overstatements I've seen in a long time.

    Blog text (1)
  • I think really that's an overstatement and an unfair one because there are plenty of examples of journalism that broke stories that were forward-looking.

  • One faces the danger of overstatement in a work such as Hart's that seeks to redraw the historiographical lines.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Saying the project will take just two days was clearly an overstatement, as it requires at least two weeks to complete.

  • His claim that he single-handedly saved the company from bankruptcy was an overstatement of his actual role in the process.

Synonyms

exaggeration
vsoverstatement
52 3.0

A statement that makes something seem bigger, better, or worse than it is

has identical meaning and serves as the general label for this idea
hyperbole
vsoverstatement
41 6.4

A statement that says something is much bigger or worse than it is to make a point

is a plain factual description of portraying something as more serious than it is
overestimation
vsoverstatement
1 5.7

A judgment that something is bigger or more important than it really is

is about saying something seems more serious rather than estimating numbers
overemphasis
vsoverstatement
1 6.1

Too much attention to one thing makes people ignore other things

expresses the same excess but as a descriptive inflation of seriousness
magnification
vsoverstatement
1 5.9

Making something seem more important than it really is

focuses on describing importance or seriousness rather than valuation acts
hyperbolism
vsoverstatement
  • Literature
8.9

To use exaggerated words or statements that are not meant to be taken literally

shares the same rhetorical sense but is an alternative formal term
overclaim
vsoverstatement
8.4

A statement that says something is better than it really is

describes general exaggeration regardless of whether evidence backs it
overrating
vsoverstatement
4.9

An opinion that something is better or worth more than it really is

describes portraying importance or seriousness rather than making a value judgment

Antonyms

Saying something in a way that makes it seem less important, serious, or bad than it really is

How Exaggerated

hyperbole
41 6.4
overstatement
13 4.4
exaggeration
52 3.0
embellishment
15 5.8

Surface Forms

overstatement singular

Morphology

overstatement = statement (transparent) = over + state + ment

The immediate base 'statement' is clearly modified by the prefix 'over' to indicate exaggeration.

Etymology

Overstatement is made from over- ('too much') and statement ('something said'), like in overdo or overcook. That's why an overstatement is saying something more than is true, or an exaggeration.