Exaggerations that either over-represent or under-represent the subject being discussed. Ex: " Florida is one big beach (or swamp)" "The gentle breeze of a hurricane."
a statement that is restrained in ironic contrast to what might have been said
A statement that says less than what it means. example - "This is a novel type of warfare that produces no destruction, except to life." E. B. White "We know that poverty is unpleasant." George Orwell "Last week I saw a woman flayed and you would hardly believe how much it altered her person for the worse." Jonathan Swift "A Treatise on Good Manners"
to say something in a manner that is less powerful than the occasion calls for. Often connected with irony because it too is based on contrast and comparison.
A form of irony in which something is represented by intention much less strongly than the facts would justify. A setting forth or recounting in restrained, moderate, or weak terms. See also IRONY
A form of irony in which something is intentionally represented as less than it is in fact.
A technique of creating emphasis by saying less than is actually or literally true. Understatement is the opposite of hyperbole or exaggeration, and can be used to create humor as well as biting satire. See Hyperbole
the opposite of hyperbole, is a deliberate weakening of the truth for comic or emphatic purpose. Commenting, for example, on the food at SkyRink, Dave Bidini says in "Kris King Looks Terrible": "…There were kiosks selling blackened grouper, lemon chicken, bean curd seared in garlic and peppers, sushi, and hot soup with prawns-not your typical hockey cuisine." Unity
