understatement
70
5.6
- noun
- /ˌʌndərˈsteɪtmənt/
:
minimización
- That's the understatement of the year.
- an understatement to say
- seems an understatement
- the art of understatement
To say that he was sad would be an understatement.
- To say that he was sad would be an understatement.
- Now to say that the police have a legitimacy problem is a massive understatement, I think.
- To say it's an honor to interview him is an understatement.
- So to say that the work that I do involves trust, I think is an understatement.
- To say that these people are undeserving of pardons is a vast, vast, vast understatement.
- So to call the stars of this show the kid stars precocious, I think is almost an understatement.
- Should I say it's probably an understatement about about gay people.
Examples
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When we consider the facts, we find that even this admission is probably an understatement.
Academic text (2010) -
To say Rocky had a one-track mind would be somewhat of an understatement.
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But I love the British understatement and his ability to tell a story and not tell me anything.
-
"To say that this cost me financially would be an understatement," he said.
Academic text (2007) -
To say that the typical American college student uses their cell phone a lot is an understatement.
Academic text (2013) -
To say that he took me from crayons to perfume would be a vast understatement.
Fiction book (2001) -
Well, that's a masterpiece of understatement.
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To say that the pope is less than happy with your rate of progress is an understatement of monumental proportions.
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Luke and I, we have a bit of history and to say we don't like each other I guess that's a bit of an understatement.
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To say that the exam was difficult is an understatement; it was the hardest test I've ever taken.
Synonyms
1
7.1
Making something seem less important or serious than it is
A way of speaking that makes something seem less serious or important than it really is on purpose
Not giving enough attention or importance to something
Antonyms
How Downplayed
Surface Forms
Morphology
understatement = understate (transparent) = under + state + ment
Formed by adding the noun-forming suffix '-ment' to the clear verb 'understate' (under + state), so the meaning is directly derived.
Etymology
Understatement comes from under ('below' or 'less than') and statement ('something said'). So an understatement is a 'way of saying something that makes it seem smaller, less serious, or less bad than it really is', often used to be polite or funny.