as in to minimize
to reduce in apparent importance
he self-deprecatingly downplays his own contributions to the festival's success
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Recent Examples of downplay
Buddhist teachings that downplay the importance of gender, traditional Chinese medicine, and biomedicine offer other perspectives on reproduction and female bodies.
—
Megan Bryson, The Conversation, 5 Feb. 2026
Republican strategist Brad Todd downplayed the significance of the Texas outcome, noting the election took place on an unusual day for voting ‒ a Saturday ‒ and was to fill the remaining months of a state Senate term while the Texas legislature is not in session.
—Joey Garrison, USA Today, 3 Feb. 2026
The Washington Post obtained an internal memo from the game's host committee this week, which downplayed previous statements from Homeland Security officials about the presence of ICE officers at the NFL championship game, which this year is being held at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
—Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
A lot of people have downplayed Jeff Hafley’s lack of experience as a head coach.
—Miami Herald, 1 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for downplay
Megan Bryson, The Conversation, 5 Feb. 2026
Republican strategist Brad Todd downplayed the significance of the Texas outcome, noting the election took place on an unusual day for voting ‒ a Saturday ‒ and was to fill the remaining months of a state Senate term while the Texas legislature is not in session.
—Joey Garrison, USA Today, 3 Feb. 2026
The Washington Post obtained an internal memo from the game's host committee this week, which downplayed previous statements from Homeland Security officials about the presence of ICE officers at the NFL championship game, which this year is being held at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
—Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
A lot of people have downplayed Jeff Hafley’s lack of experience as a head coach.
—Miami Herald, 1 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for downplay
Recent Examples of Synonyms for downplay
Verb
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The company says the trucks set an industry record by completing 200 battery swaps in a single day, highlighting the potential of its autonomous, battery-swapping technology to increase productivity and minimize downtime in large-scale mining operations.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Feb. 2026
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In order to maximize speed and minimize the use of energy, especially with the additional weight of the rifle, freestyle technique efficiency is essential.—
Janet Loehrke,
USA Today,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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After days of deliberations, the House justice committee voted to dismiss the impeachment complaints filed by left-wing activists and a lawyer against Marcos.—
JIM GOMEZ THE ASSOCIATED PRESS,
Arkansas Online,
5 Feb. 2026
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Saab denied the allegations and appealed to have the charges dismissed on grounds of diplomatic immunity.—
Landon Mion,
FOXNews.com,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Whatever your preconceived notions about Feldman are, Hume’s film will expand and challenge them; the movie’s greatness lies in its ability to capture all of Feldman’s contradictions and self-destructiveness, empathizing with him without soft-pedaling his sins.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
23 Jan. 2026
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In fact, several of the investigators believed the shooting was intentional, and that the Biden administration had actually soft-pedaled the investigation’s findings to appease Israel.—
Scott Griffen,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Downplay.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/downplay. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
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