understatement

American  

[uhn-der-steyt-muhnt, uhn-der-steyt-] / ˌʌn dərˈsteɪt mənt, ˈʌn dərˌsteɪt- /

noun

1. the act or an instance of understating, or representing in a weak or restrained way that is not borne out by the facts.

   The journalist wrote that the earthquake had caused some damage. This turned out to be a massive understatement of the devastation.

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understatement Cultural  

1. A form of irony in which something is intentionally represented as less than it is: “Hank Aaron was a pretty good ball player.”

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Etymology

Origin of understatement

under- + statement

Example Sentences

Harry's mother, Sarah Carter, told the court: "Anything I write will be an understatement of the depth of pain."

From BBC

Yet Leo found—his son tells us with eloquent understatement—that “some Germans managed to remain decent, when decency could be very dangerous.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Updating fans in a personal message, the former Smiths frontman said: "It will take me one year to recover. And that is an understatement."

From BBC

“Weird is like the biggest understatement of all time,” he said, shoving his hands into his hair.

From Literature

Millersburg will be a hotbed of drama—and not all of it on the stage, where Richard will direct his mother’s funeral with the understatement of Cecil B. DeMille.

From The Wall Street Journal