water down

verb

watered down; watering down; waters down

transitive verb

: to reduce or temper the force or effectiveness of

watered down the plan

watered-down

ˈwȯ-tərd-ˈdau̇n 

ˈwä-

adjective

Synonyms of water down

• dilute
• load
• dirty
• cut
• pollute
• poison
• infect

Examples of water down in a Sentence

watered down the cocktails while jacking up their prices

Recent Examples on the Web

Newspaper op-eds from big names have long been ghostwritten by junior staffers or outside PR firms — no disclosure necessary, and often watered down and hyper-optimized to be as palatable as possible. — J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026

Dodson and Rodriguez had been competing for the starting spot opposite Brooks, but injuries to that unit had watered down the competition and hindered the evaluation process. — Omar Kelly august 26, Miami Herald, 26 Aug. 2026

Donalds has tried to defuse the issue by saying that SB 484, Florida’s watered down tech protection law, guarantees Floridians will never be hit with electricity rate hikes as a result of data centers. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026

The barges were meant to create an underwater barrier and redirect the water down the river’s main channel and toward the Cernavoda plant. — ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1811, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for water down

• chinatown
• tumbledown
• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown