What Is Meiosis in Rhetoric? Definition and Examples

The English language loves understatements. You might not realize it, but chances are you often use words to downplay a situation—either for emphasis or humor.

A particular type of understatement is called meiosis. You might know it from a scientific point of view, but let’s talk about how this term is used to spice up language and communication.

What is Meiosis?

In rhetoric, meiosis is a type of understatement, an expression that implies something is less important or significant than it actually is, often by using euphemisms.

You’ll mostly find this being used to downplay something uncomfortable, annoying, or taboo. It can also be used to make fun of something, such as belittling a profession. However, not all examples of meiosis refer to negative situations. 

The term comes from the Greek word μειόω, meaning “to make smaller” or “to diminish.” Its plural form is meioses and its adjectival form, meiotic.

Examples of Meiosis

Here are a few examples of meiosis, taken from different aspects of literature, film, and real life.

In Literature

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare 

“Ay, ay, a scratch, a scratch. Marry, ’tis enough.

Where is my page?—Go, villain, fetch a surgeon.”

Mercutio utters these lines after being stabbed by Tybalt, despite the wound being fatal. He further emphasizes this with the following:

“No, ’tis not so deep as a well nor so wide as a church-door, but ’tis enough, ’twill serve. Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man.”

He’s well aware he’s dying, saying “twill serve” to bring about his death and that he’ll be a “grave man” (a corpse) soon.  

Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway

Here, the speaker is persuading a woman, Jig, to get an abortion. To make her more willing to do it, he makes the operation sound simple and painless. 

The Black Cat by Edgar Allen Poe

For the most wild yet most homely narrative which I am about to pen, I neither expect nor solicit belief. Mad indeed would I be to expect it, in a case where my very senses reject their own evidence. Yet, mad am I not—and very surely do I not dream. But to-morrow I die, and to-day I would unburden my soul. My immediate purpose is to place before the world, plainly, succinctly, and without comment, a series of mere household events.

The speaker opens up the narrative by telling you that what follows is nothing more than “a series of mere household events.” However, the build-up towards that last line suggests something more serious and terrifying.

In Film

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

This movie has a lot of witty examples of meiosis. The above scene, however, is by far the most well-known and well-received. Here’s a transcript of the relevant lines:

The Black Knight ridiculously fights on despite being grievously injured. He continuously disregards the severity of his wounds through phrases like “tis but a scratch”, “I’ve had worse”, and “just a flesh wound!”

Jaws 

“You’re gonna need a bigger boat.”

While scattering bait on the water, police chief Martin Brody catches a glimpse of the enormous great white shark menacing their beach town. This one line understates not only the size of the shark but also the danger of being in an inadequate vessel that’s currently floating in the shark’s natural habitat.

In Real Life

People have used many euphemisms to underplay other people’s professions, historical events, and more. Here are some common examples.

• “Our peculiar institution” refers to slavery in the American South.
• “The Troubles” is the name for a period of violence in Northern Ireland.
• “The Pond” is a colloquial phrase for the Atlantic Ocean.
• “Shrink” for a psychiatrist
• “Grease monkey” for a mechanic
• “Tree hugger” for an environmentalist
•  “Pump jockey” for a gas station attendant
• “Pecker checker” for a urologist
• “Ambulance chaser” for a personal injury lawyer

Meiosis Vs Litotes

Both figures of speech are closely related for their intentional understatement but have differences in usage and effects. Meiosis uses understatement to deliberately lessen significance, as a way to belittle or dismiss. 

Like so:

• “I guess I did okay on the test.” (but actually achieved the highest score)
• “Nah, it’s just a simple dinner I made.” (despite being a five-course meal)

On the other hand, Litotes uses understatement to create emphasis by denying its opposite. It’s a way to better communicate nuances by having your audience think more deeply about your use of words.

Here are the two examples above, rewritten as litotes:

• “My test score isn’t bad at all!” (It’s actually the highest.)
• “My cooking isn’t too shabby.” (It’s actually great.)

So the former downplays while the latter negates. Both can be used to emphasize, but in different ways. 

Purpose of Meiosis

There are a few reasons why you would use meiosis. Most commonly, it’s used to belittle or dismiss something. You’ll see this type often in debates, rants, and other wordy battles.

You won an Olympic medal? That’s just a piece of metal.

Other times, it is used to create distance from something terrible, awkward, or taboo. 

In the corporate world, we don’t “fire” employees. We “dismiss” them.

And sometimes you can use it as an inverse for hyperbole, creating comedic or dramatic impact with understatements instead of overstatements.

It’s typhoon season right now, so expect a tiny bit of rain here and there.

Always consider the context, tone, and purpose of your writing whenever you decide to employ meiosis. Otherwise, it just makes your work awkward to read and understand. 

What is your favorite example of Meiosis? Share it in the comments below!

If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:

• The Most Common Figures of Speech: Definitions, Examples, and How to Use Each
• Understatement Definition and Examples
• Litotes: How Negative Words are Used to Express the Opposite
• Hyperbole: Definition and Examples