The first step we are going to take to know the meaning of the term exaggeration is its etymological origin. In this case, it must be stated that it derives from Latin, exactly from “exaggeratio”, which is the result of the sum of the following lexical components:
-The prefix “ex-”, which can be translated as “outwards”.
-The verb “aggerare”, which is synonymous with “accumulate”.
-The suffix “-cion”, which is used to indicate “action and effect”.
It came to Spanish as exaggeration : the act and consequence of exaggerating . This verb (exaggerate), for its part, refers to overloading or enlarging something , giving it an excessive size or a magnitude that is not real. The term also refers to that which exceeds the limits of what is reasonable or what is true .
For example: “Ordering five large pizzas for three people is an exaggeration” , “Talking about a social crisis seems like an exaggeration to me” , “The official assured that the restoration of the building will cost more than half a million pesos, but the analysts stated that “That figure is an exaggeration.”
Among the synonyms of exaggeration are disproportion, weighting, increase or excess. On the contrary, among its antonyms we can highlight words such as moderation, restraint, attenuation, measure or sobriety.
When a person narrates a fact by adding details or amplifying certain issues , they are exaggerating. Suppose a young man describes to his friends a goal he scored. The boy in question eluded two rivals before scoring: however, in his story, he claims that he avoided five defenders and scored with his back to the goal, falling. These details are an exaggeration.
There are exaggerations that do not have much relevance, such as the aforementioned exaggeration of the footballer who details how he scored a goal. However, others are serious: an NGO cannot exaggerate the amount of money needed to help a family that is going through a certain problem, for example, since such exaggeration would constitute a scam if the amount collected exceeds what is expected. It was actually needed and the organization appropriates the surplus.
In the same way, we cannot ignore the fact that in the field of advertising it is very common to use exaggeration when, for example, highlighting the advantages of a product or the positive aspects of any type of product. service. It does so because it is a way not only to highlight the qualities in favor of the article in question but also to be able to capture the public's attention.
So, for example, we have all seen advertisements for knives where they are not only capable of cutting meat, vegetables or fish but also soda cans and other very hard materials. What's more, there is even an advertisement for a whitening toothpaste that shows us that those who use it have to cover their mouths while they sleep because the white of their teeth lights up the room.
At a literary level, exaggeration can manifest itself through hyperbole , a device that enlarges characteristics or qualities. “The whole world fit in his hand” is a hyperbole that exaggerates the size of a hand.