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Hyperbole: Word Wednesday (Improve Your Word Power)

Hyperbole is a word that is in the top 1% of “look-ups” according to Merriam-Webster.

That comes as no surprise to me as it is a word often heard but many don’t know its meaning. I find the “Did You Know” part of the M-W entry interesting.

hyperbole
noun hy·per·bo·le \hī-ˈpər-bə-(ˌ)lē\
Popularity: Top 1% of lookups

Definition

: extravagant exaggeration (as “mile-high ice-cream cones”)
hyperbolistplay \hī-ˈpər-bə-list\ noun

Examples in a sentence

Four decades later we’re all blabbermouths, adrift on a sea of hyperbole, shouting to be heard. —Steve Rushin, Sports Illustrated, 1 Apr. 2002
… balanced on the razor edge of anachronism, creating a rich stew of accepted and invented history, anecdote, myth and hyperbole. —T. Coraghessan Boyle, New York Times Book Review, 18 May 1997
Even if we discount the hyperbole evident in such accounts, they were far from inventions. —Lawrence W. Levine, The Unpredictable Past, 1993
<“enough food to feed a whole army” is a common example of hyperbole>

Did You Know?

In the 5th century B.C. there was a rabble-rousing Athenian, a politician named Hyperbolus, who often made exaggerated promises and claims that whipped people into a frenzy. But even though it sounds appropriate, Hyperbolus’ name did not play a role in the development of the modern English word hyperbole. That noun does come to us from Greek (by way of Latin), but from the Greek verb hyperballein, meaning “to exceed,” not from the name of the Athenian demagogue.

Origin and Etymology of hyperbole

Latin, from Greek hyperbolē excess, hyperbole, hyperbola, from hyperballein to exceed, from hyper- + ballein to throw 

First Known Use: 15th century

There you have it. Hyperbole is used every day without folks knowing it. It’s part of story telling! 🙂


If you are starting out as a writer then I thoroughly recommend checking out ProWritingAid. It is a spell-checker, ‘grammarist’ and editor all rolled into one bundle.

It saved me a fortune. I used it to self-edit my last book so it was ready to be professionally edited. Indeed, if funds are limited it can cut out the need for a professional editor.

It’s useful too even if you don’t plan to write a book.


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