litotes

/laɪˈtəʊtiːz/ (bre, ipa) · /laɪˈtəʊtiːz/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈlī-tə-ˌtēz ˈli-, lī-ˈtō-ˌtēz/ (ame, mw)

litotes — 名詞

1. a way of saying something is true or strong by denying its opposite, so that the

1.名詞C2
釋義

曲言法；反語

用否定相反詞來婉轉強調的修辭法

a way of saying something is true or strong by denying its opposite, so that the meaning sounds quieter than it really is — for example, calling a great singer "not bad" or describing a huge crowd as "not a small turnout"

例句

When Mathieu called the championship win "not too shabby," his teammates laughed at the obvious litotes.

當 Mathieu 把冠軍勝利說成「還算不錯」時，隊友都笑他用了明顯的曲言法。

litotes used in casual conversation to praise a major achievement

Professor Adina taught her students that litotes is common in everyday English, as in "she's no fool."

Adina 教授告訴學生，曲言法在日常英語中很常見，例如「她可不是個傻子」。

litotes + example pattern: "no + noun"

同義詞
  • understatement

    broader term; litotes is one specific kind that works by negating the opposite

  • meiosis

    near-synonym in classical rhetoric; meiosis is the wider category of belittlement, litotes is the negation form

反義詞
  • hyperbole

    the opposite rhetorical move — exaggeration rather than understatement

  • overstatement

    general antonym; making something sound bigger or stronger than it really is

用法筆記

Almost always uncountable. The plural form is identical to the singular ('litotes'). Frequently appears with verbs like 'use', 'employ', or 'rely on', and with the article 'a' when referring to a single instance ('a litotes' is rare; 'an example of litotes' is more natural).

常見錯誤

❌The speaker used many litoteses in his speech.
✅The speaker used many examples of litotes in his speech.
💡'litotes' has no separate plural form; use a paraphrase like 'examples of litotes' for plural reference.
❌She praised him with litotes by calling him brilliant.
✅She praised him with litotes by calling him "not stupid.
💡litotes praises by denying the opposite, not by direct positive words.