From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbathosba‧thos /ˈbeɪθɒs $ -θɑːs/ noun [uncountable] formal ALORDINARYin writing, a play etc, a sudden change from a subject that is beautiful, moral, or serious to something that is ordinary, silly, or not important► see thesaurus at language
Examples from the Corpus
bathos• The endearing bathos and crassness of Laurel found an admirable foil in the elephantine smugness of his rotund partner.• There had been no mad paroxysm of love, with the inevitable bathos.• But Phillips' gift is in deftly leavening bathos with pathos.• Such titles and ornamentation can create the effect of bathos, or comic undermining of what you do achieve.• a drama that is full of bathos• Skillfully using bathos, he emptied the story of any heroic dimensions and converted it into farce.Origin bathos (1700-1800) Greek “depth”, from bathys “deep” 