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Litotes

Literary/ Cultural Context Note

Litencyc Editors (Independent Scholar - Europe)
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From the Greek litos meaning ‘small’, the rhetorical use of understatement (diminishing) to imply the opposite. For example, “He was not a little concerned at the loss of his fortune.”

30 words

Citation: Editors, Litencyc. "Litotes". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 November 2001 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=668, accessed 10 June 2026.]

668 Litotes 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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