bathos

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun triteness or triviality of style
  2. noun insincere pathos
  3. noun a change from a serious subject to a disappointing one

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek βάθος (báthos, “depth”). Employed ironically following Alexander Pope's Peri Bathous, lampooning various errors in contemporary writers.

In classic literature

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