Litotes

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Litotes

Postby Dr. Goodword » Sun Oct 24, 2021 4:10 pm

• litotes •


Pronunciation: li-tê-teez or lai-to-teez • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Noun

Meaning: A double negative that emphasizes the positive, as 'an investment that is not without risk', meaning "it has some risk".

Notes: Today's Good Word does not change in the plural: many litotes. An expression that uses litotes is litotic and, yes, you may speak litotically. Litotes is the opposite of hyperbole, rhetorical exaggeration. It is one side of an interesting characteristic of language: the negation of an opposite is more positive than the negation of the positive itself. For example, in the series, (1) good, (2) not bad, (3) not good, (4) bad, notice that not good, implies WORSE than "not bad". In fact, not bad means rather good and not good means rather bad!

In Play: Litotes is often used to soften the blow of an uncomfortable truth, as when your friend says that your blind date is "not unattractive". So, he is not attractive but that is better than "not attractive". Litotes can also reflect an ironic emphasis in reverse: "While I wasn't looking forward to the reception, the food made it not at all unpleasant."

Word History: Today's Good Word was taken pretty much 'as is' from Greek litotes "simplicity", the noun from litos "smooth, plain, simple". The Greek root is based on PIE (s)lei- "flat, slippery", which is also behind Latin limos "slime". That is also probably it there in linere "to anoint", the root of English liniment. The Germanic languages retained the initial Fickle S, so we get English slime, slick, slide, and slip. However, we find that S in other languages, too: Old Irish sleman "smooth", Czech slimák "snail, slug", and Latvian slieka "earthworm". (Today we would like to thank Good Word subscriber Lew Jury for suggesting a term that is not at all uninteresting.)
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jisner2
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Re: Litotes

Postby jisner2 » Mon Oct 25, 2021 4:24 pm

Until reading today's Good Word, I thought that litotes was the antonym of hyperbole: understatement, as opposed to overstatement. But today I learned today that litotes is double negation. But isn't double negation simply one kind of understatement? If so, is it seems like there should be a more general (inclusive) term for understatement? Maybe hypobole?

David Myer
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Re: Litotes

Postby David Myer » Wed Oct 27, 2021 7:23 am

I like hypobole. Good suggestion. Let's use it.

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Slava
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Re: Litotes

Postby Slava » Wed Oct 27, 2021 9:03 am

A double negation to emphasize a positive comes from a word that means simplicity? Eek. :o :? :shock:
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Audiendus
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Re: Litotes

Postby Audiendus » Wed Oct 27, 2021 9:13 am

But isn't double negation simply one kind of understatement? If so, is it seems like there should be a more general (inclusive) term for understatement? Maybe hypobole?
Possibly meiosis.

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Slava
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Re: Litotes

Postby Slava » Wed Oct 27, 2021 9:44 am

Meiosis turns out to have been a Good Word way back when, but it never made it to the Agora. It's there now.
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.

Debbymoge
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Re: Litotes

Postby Debbymoge » Wed Oct 27, 2021 3:57 pm

A Harvard professor of English was in full flow.
Struck by a quotation from a book featuring speakers of colloquial English, he drove off onto an aside.
"That double negative deserves to be noted," he said.
"In Spanish, a double negative is the norm. In Russian, it is used for emphasis. In English, a double negative creates a positive.
But in no language does a double positive create a negative!"
He surveyed the now quietly thoughtful students before him.
As the bell rang for the change of classes, a voice from the back said softly, "Yeah, right."
I am but mad north-north-west. When the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsaw.
Shakespear

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Slava
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Re: Litotes

Postby Slava » Wed Oct 27, 2021 5:33 pm

My version ends in "Yeah, yeah."

My father liked to say things like, "I couldn't fail to disagree with you less."
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.


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