figures of speech - Intentional double negation

Is there a name for this manner of purposely speaking in double negatives, e.g.

I wouldn't say no to a cup of tea!

I've noticed it as a habit of some people, perhaps often going along with a particular type of sense of humour and British understatement.

Answer

This is litotes, a figure of speech using understatement - in particular, double negation - for rhetorical effect. It's not a recent habit, or even solely a British one, but rather a figure of speech used in many cultures and languages.

A prototypical English example is "not bad!"

Comments

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