untragic
|un-trag-ic|
/ʌnˈtrædʒɪk/
not tragic; lacking tragedy
Etymology
'untragic' originates from English, specifically the prefix 'un-' + the adjective 'tragic', where 'un-' meant 'not' and 'tragic' related to 'tragedy'.
'tragic' comes from Greek 'tragikos' via Latin and Old French into Middle English as 'tragic'; the negative prefix 'un-' is a productive Old English/West Germanic prefix used to negate adjectives, and combining them produced 'untragic' in modern English usage.
Initially 'tragic' meant 'pertaining to tragedy' (from dramatic genre); over time it came to mean 'causing great sadness or disaster'. 'Untragic' therefore developed to mean 'not possessing those tragic qualities' or 'avoiding tragic treatment'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
not tragic; lacking the characteristics of tragedy (not causing deep sorrow or disastrous emotion).
The film's ending was surprisingly untragic, resolving tensions quietly rather than with catastrophe.
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Adjective 2
(Stylistic/literary) Deliberately avoiding or downplaying tragic elements; treated in a flat, subdued, or comic manner rather than tragically.
Critics described the play as untragic in tone, preferring irony and understatement to overt pathos.
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Last updated: 2025/11/26 16:09