verbal hedge

A word or phrase that makes statements less forceful or assertive. Contrast with boosting and intensifier. See also:

• Stance
• Degree Modifier
• Modality
• Downtoner
• Comment Clause

Examples and Observations:

• "I am a deeply religious nonbeliever. This is a somewhat new kind of religion."
  (Albert Einstein)



• "I think that God in creating Man somewhat overestimated his ability."
  (Oscar Wilde)



• "It's kind of fun to do the impossible."
  (Walt Disney)



• "Lawyers I suppose were children once."
  (Charles Lamb)



• "You sort of start thinking anything's possible if you've got enough nerve."
  (J. K. Rowling)



• "Life, I fancy, would very often be insupportable, but for the luxury of self-compassion."
  (George Gissing)



• "It seems to me that trying to live without friends is like milking a bear to get cream for your morning coffee. It is a whole lot of trouble, and then not worth much after you get it."
  (Zora Neale Hurston)



• "Maybe I could have loved you better.
  Maybe you should have loved me more.
  Maybe our hearts were just next in line.
  Maybe everything breaks sometime."
  (Jewel, "Everything Breaks Sometime")



• "In addition to microexpressions, [Paul] Ekman said, certain aspects of a person's demeanor can indicate whether he is lying. . . . Word choices often change with lying, too, with the speaker using 'distancing language,' like fewer first-person pronouns and more in the third person. Also common are what Ekman calls 'verbal hedges,' which liars might use to buy time as they figure out what they want to say. To illustrate a verbal hedge, Ekman pointed to [a cartoon]: a shark standing in a courtroom, looking up at the judge and saying, 'Define "frenzy."'"
  (R. Henig, "Looking for the Lie." New York Times, Feb. 5, 2006)