hyperbole
Americannoun
-
obvious and intentional exaggeration.
-
an extravagant statement or figure of speech not intended to be taken literally, as “to wait an eternity.”
- Synonyms:
- overstatement
- Antonyms:
- understatement
noun
Usage
What is hyperbole? Hyperbole is an intentional, obvious exaggeration, such as I hit that dang piñata a million times before it broke.Hyperbole is not supposed to be taken literally. The reader or listener is supposed to know that the user of hyperbole is joking or not being serious, as in It took them forever to finally finish raking the leaves.The adjective form of hyperbole is hyperbolic, as in My grandfather often told me hyperbolic stories of walking 30 miles to go to school. The opposite of hyperbole is litotes, an intentional understatement, as in Leonardo da Vinci was not bad at painting.
Other Word Forms
- hyperbolism noun
Etymology
Origin of hyperbole
First recorded in 1520–30; from Greek hyperbolḗ “excess, exaggeration, a throwing beyond,” equivalent to hyper- hyper- + bolḗ “a throw”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But this is the season of hyperbole, so the Dodgers still have a chance to go 194-0 between the Cactus League and the regular season.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2026
He tends to pick his words carefully and avoid exaggeration or hyperbole.
From BBC • Jan. 19, 2026
And yet it is precisely a lack of hyperbole or hysteria—a quieting control, one might say—that makes it so moving.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 31, 2025
Depending on his mood, he might wave it away as campaign hyperbole.
From Slate • Dec. 8, 2025
After Colonel Meecham had conducted the inspections of the other rooms, Mary Anne walked into Ben’s room holding her stomach with melodramatic hyperbole.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
