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

States that are already watering down or even eliminating vaccine requirements may align with the administration’s decision to neglect and hide the data, contributing to a growing gap between states on vaccine policy, further fragmenting and politicizing decisions that should be based on science. —Jill Rosenthal, STAT, 14 Jan. 2026

Los Angeles Fire Chief Jaime Moore admitted last week that his department’s after-action report on the Palisades fire was watered down to shield top brass from scrutiny. —Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026

Rinse it with clean water and dump the dirty water down the toilet—not the sink. —Cody Godwin, USA Today, 11 Jan. 2026

Tech companies are poised for a big win if Europe waters down its digital regulations overhaul and makes compliance voluntary. —Rachyl Jones, semafor.com, 9 Jan. 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