understatement

noun

Definition of understatementnext
1
as in meiosis

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2
as in restraint

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of understatement To classify the upcoming back-to-back games as a test for the cornerbacks would be an understatement. — Miami Herald, 4 Oct. 2026 Justice might be an understatement — the film went on to generate an eye-watering $401 million at the global box office upon its May release. — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 26 Sep. 2026 To say Scott was an amazing father, brother, son, uncle, godfather and friend to all would be an understatement. — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026 To say that senior running back Jayden Schlosser is almost unstoppable for Oak Lawn would be an understatement. — Patrick Z. McGavin, Chicago Tribune, 26 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for understatement
Recent Examples of Synonyms for understatement
  1. meiosis
  2. restraint
  3. disparagement
  4. severity
  5. modesty
  6. moderation
  7. simplicity
  8. plainness
Noun
  • During meiosis, a structure called the spindle forms, which lines the chromosomes up and eventually pulls them apart.
    — Megan Molteni, STAT, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Chromosome pairs are also essential for meiosis, the specialized type of cell division that produces sperm and eggs.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 13 July 2026
Definition of meiosis
Noun
  • Amodei pointed to two developments as the reason for more restraint.
    — Stephen Pitt-Walker, Forbes.com, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Some Democratic lawmakers are already stressing that congressional investigations have to be directly tied to affordability issues, while urging restraint.
    — Seung Min Kim, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of restraint
Noun
  • Unsurprisingly, the disparagement of Congress is unrelenting.
    — Scott Warren, Washington Post, 9 Oct. 2026
  • That growth has been accompanied by disparagement from some sports fans, who gripe about the company’s scale and the quality of its products.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of disparagement
Noun
  • But questions remain over the severity of the conditions to which ADOR subjected NewJeans—a battery of brutal training regimes and unusually strict personal terms that are laid out in a new report from The New York Times.
    — Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Homeowners face fresh challenges as climate change accelerates the frequency and severity of storms.
    — Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of severity
Noun
  • New life for the Armstrong house Schreiber, who grew up in Dayton, about 60 miles south of Armstrong’s hometown, always admired him for his achievements, modesty and character.
    — John Seewer, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
  • The black mesh gown swept the floor and featured a plunging V-neck bodice and pink crystallized adornments throughout, offering the musician a modicum of modesty in specific areas.
    — Amina Ayoud, Footwear News, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of modesty
Noun
  • But moderation wasn't good enough for the segregationists who made up the majority of Arkansas voters at the time.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 4 Nov. 2026
  • After running a campaign centered around moderation and appealing to both sides of the political spectrum, Hamilton will soon have to take clear positions on key policy measures that impact Kansas.
    — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of moderation
Noun
  • One can treat it as an indelible feature of human psychology, an unavoidable by-product of our appetite for simplicity and affiliation.
    — Paul Bloom, New Yorker, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Despite the beery bonhomie and singalong-friendly simplicity of their tunes, the Twisted Teens are grappling with an increasingly complex tangle of contradictions and tensions.
    — Stuart Berman, Pitchfork, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of simplicity
Noun
  • There was elegance in the white room’s plainness, and it could be embraced by everyone without drawing attention to stark lines of class.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The vestiges of his fading memory flash by with a haunting plainness, the melancholy of all this Americana and the sadness of a mind ravaged by time strike the viewer plainly at the end of this maximalist piece of life-writing.
    — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of plainness

Browse Nearby Words

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understatement
understatements
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Cite this Entry

“Understatement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/understatement. Accessed 10 Nov. 2026.

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