downplay

verb

down·​play ˈdau̇n-ˌplā How to pronounce downplay (audio)
downplayed; downplaying; downplays

Examples of downplay in a Sentence

Athletes often downplay their injuries. he self-deprecatingly downplays his own contributions to the festival's success
Recent Examples on the Web Fortune Stacey Abrams on outreach Companies trying to downplay their ESG and diversity efforts won’t succeed in tamping down political blowback, former Georgia state minority leader Stacey Abrams said at Fortune’s Impact Initiative conference. Alan Murray, Fortune, 15 Sep. 2023 At the same time, the BJP and its supporters have been accused of downplaying the legacy of India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, a longtime Gandhi admirer and ally. Rhea Mogul, CNN, 10 Sep. 2023 Advertisement Afterward, Kelly both praised his quarterback and downplayed his prospects for keeping the starting job. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2023 However, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak downplayed Keegan's comments, saying that 95% of schools in the U.K. would be unaffected. Justin Klawans, The Week, 4 Sep. 2023 Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time champion whose consecutive win streak is five, sought to downplay Verstappen’s achievement before the race. Sahil Kapur, NBC News, 3 Sep. 2023 While Kim tried to downplay her runway experience during her recent appearance at the Balenciaga Couture Fall 2022 show, the SKIMS founder actually has a long history of runway modeling, although perhaps for designers slightly less prestigious than the luxury Parisian fashion house. Emily Kirkpatrick, Peoplemag, 2 Sep. 2023 Three campaign officials and two others familiar with the matter said that the new phase coincides with officials privately downplaying expectations about how much the re-election effort will raise this fundraising quarter, which ends Sept. 30. Elizabeth Both, NBC News, 11 Sep. 2023 Cornyn downplayed the significance of those incidents and expressed confidence in McConnell’s ability to do the job. Joseph Morton, Dallas News, 11 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'downplay.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1948, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of downplay was in 1948

Dictionary Entries Near downplay

Cite this Entry

“Downplay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/downplay. Accessed 3 Oct. 2023.

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