Intensiivistavate väljendite kujundist
On the Imagery of Intensive Phrases

Summary/Abstract: The database of Estonian phrases contains numerous hyperbolic phrases such as üldse mitte ‘not at all’, mitte kõige vähimatki ‘not in the least’, mitte vähimalgi määral ‘not one bit’. These phrases are mostly expressions of negation, and could be more specifically referred to as negation intensive phrases. In these phrases, hyperbole is mostly concerned with caricaturelike exaggeration of ignorance, indolence, or any other human vice. Such exaggeration may often lead to the grotesque or absurd. This paper investigates the use of hyperbole as a stylistic device in more detail.

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