way of describing; mode of expression
General noun for a manner of describing or narrating something. Not a common everyday word; more likely in discussions about style or rhetoric.
This author's way of describing things is unique and draws the reader in.
Linguistics term for grammatical mood (indicative, subjunctive, etc.). Used in technical contexts; cross-referenced with 法 (sense 3).
See also: 法
Japanese grammatical moods include the imperative form and the conditional form.
modality
litotes; meiosis
Compound of 叙 (describe, relate) and 法 (method, law). The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the spelling is conventionally associated with the meaning 'way of describing' and later extended to grammatical mood.