understatement
Word family
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++LDOCE 5++un·der·state·ment /ˌʌndəˈsteɪtmənt $ -dər-/ ●○○ noun 1 [countable]EXPRESS a statement that is not strong enough to express how good, bad, impressive etc something really is 不充分的陈述，轻描淡写的陈述 To say the movie was bad is an understatement. 说这部电影不好还算是客气的。 ‘It wasn’t very easy to find the house.’ ‘That’s got to be the understatement of the year!’ “这房子不是很好找。” “那可是说得太轻了！”2 [uncountable]DESCRIBE the practice of making something seem to have less of a particular quality than it really has 淡化，低调with understatement ‘We have not done quite well enough, ’ Macmillan said, with characteristic understatement. “我们做得还不够好。”麦克米伦以他特有的低调态度说道。Examples from the Corpus
understatement• To say that I was surprised by this state of affairs would be an understatement.• To say I was surprised would be an understatement.• To say that Reba Cooley presented a striking appearance would have been an understatement of ridiculous proportions.• To suggest that Niagara was an obsession with him is an understatement.• We had had a superb day's climbing, and to say his death was tragic is an understatement.• That's the biggest understatement of all time!• To say that his situation was difficult would be a decided understatement.• She was conscious of being a misfit, and that was a great understatement.is an understatement• To say that the teaching staff were not Anglo-Catholic is an understatement.• To say she came gingerly is an understatement.• To suggest that Niagara was an obsession with him is an understatement.• Odd is an understatement of classic proportions, but then M R James is a very understated writer.• To say that Crenshaw is off the beaten path is an understatement.• Well, I am no medical man, but that is an understatement.• We had had a superb day's climbing, and to say his death was tragic is an understatement.• To say Link Wray is the most important and influential rock guitarist of the past 40 years is an understatement.un·der·state·ment nounChineseSyllable
a enough is that statement strong not Corpus
understatement
un‧der‧state‧ment /ˌʌndəˈsteɪtmənt $ -dər-/
noun
To say the movie was bad is an understatement.
‘It wasn’t very easy to find the house.’ ‘That’s got to be the understatement of the year!’
2. [uncountable] the practice of making something seem to have less of a particular quality than it really has
with understatement
‘We have not done quite well enough,’ Macmillan said, with characteristic understatement.
un‧der‧state‧ment /ˌʌndəˈsteɪtmənt $ -dər-/
noun Word Family: verb: state, understate ≠ overstate; noun: statement, understatement ≠ overstatement; adjective: understated ≠ OVERSTATED
1. [countable] a statement that is not strong enough to express how good, bad, impressive etc something really is: 2. [uncountable] the practice of making something seem to have less of a particular quality than it really has
with understatement