bathos

IPA/ˈbeɪθɒs/
IPA/ˈbeɪθɑːs/

bathos — noun

1. the jarring effect created when a serious scene or statement suddenly shifts int

1.名詞C1
釋義

the jarring effect created when a serious scene or statement suddenly shifts into something trivial or silly, often without the speaker realizing it

例句

The funeral speech was touching until a mention of video games brought unintentional bathos.

bathos as unintentional comedy from a sudden drop in tone

Nora called the grand mountain view 'just like my kitchen wallpaper,' and the bathos made everyone laugh.

collocation: make + [person] + laugh

同義詞
  • anticlimax

    more general; bathos is a specific kind of anticlimax involving a shift from elevated to trivial

  • comedown

    informal synonym for any disappointing drop, not necessarily in art or writing

反義詞
  • sublimity

    the quality of being extremely noble or elevated, the opposite of a drop from the grand to the trivial

  • loftiness

    a consistently elevated tone, the opposite of bathos's jarring descent

文法句型

bathos of [something]

a moment of bathos

lapse into bathos

用法筆記

Frequently describes an unintentionally humorous shift in tone within a serious piece of writing or speech. The effect almost always weakens rather than strengthens emotional impact.

常見錯誤

❌The movie's bathos was very emotional.
✅The movie's bathos ruined the emotional scene.
💡Bathos produces a drop in emotion, not an increase; it is almost always a negative effect.

2. a lack of originality in writing or art, shown by the use of dull, overused idea

2.名詞C1
釋義

a lack of originality in writing or art, shown by the use of dull, overused ideas and phrases that give the work a flat, uninspired quality

例句

The critic said the novel's steady bathos made every page feel stale.

collocation: steady bathos

Yuki avoided bathos by using fresh images instead of old sayings.

avoid + bathos + by + [method]

同義詞
  • triteness

    more direct synonym; 'bathos' carries an extra layer of literary criticism

  • banality

    focuses on being boring and ordinary rather than stale through overuse

  • commonplaceness

    less common synonym for the same quality

反義詞

文法句型

bathos of [style/writing]

descend into bathos

用法筆記

In this sense, bathos describes the quality of the work itself rather than a specific moment of tonal drop — it is closer to 'banality' or 'staleness' of expression.

3. fake or excessively strong sad emotion in a story, film, or performance, intende

3.名詞C1
釋義

fake or excessively strong sad emotion in a story, film, or performance, intended to make the audience cry but felt instead to be insincere

例句

The crying children and slow music made the audience feel bathos, not real sadness.

contrast: felt bathos, not [genuine emotion]

Imani thought the death scene was pure bathos, with no honest feeling behind it.

collocation: pure bathos

同義詞
反義詞
  • pathos

    genuine, well-judged sadness in art that moves the audience honestly

  • restraint

    the quality of holding back emotion, the opposite of overdone feeling

文法句型

bathos of [feeling/emotion]

overdone bathos

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is not about a sudden drop to something silly, but about emotion that feels fake or overdone from the start. The common thread is a failure of seriousness — either tonal or emotional.

常見錯誤

❌The film was so sad, it was full of bathos.
✅The film tried too hard to be sad, and its bathos made me roll my eyes.
💡Bathos is always a criticism of forced or poorly handled emotion, not a description of genuine sadness.