Synonyms of downplay

downplay

verb

ˈdau̇n-ˌplā 

as in to minimize

to reduce in apparent importance

he self-deprecatingly downplays his own contributions to the festival's success

Synonyms & Similar Words

• minimize
• dismiss
• soft-pedal
• de-emphasize
• play down
• understate
• underplay
• denigrate
• disparage
• belittle
• derogate
• decry
• deprecate
• bad-mouth
• depreciate
• run down
• talk down
• cry down
• kiss off
• trash-talk
• poor-mouth
• trash
• put down

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• exaggerate
• overstate
• overdo
• elaborate
• pad
• magnify
• stretch
• embellish
• overdraw
• embroider
• overemphasize
• hedge
• sensationalize
• overplay
• fudge
• melodramatize

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of downplay

Nattie could have danced around the naked locker room story and downplayed it. — Sean Joseph Outkick, FOXNews.com, 21 July 2026

The National Park Service has quietly updated a Philadelphia historic site by installing controversial displays that critics say downplay the brutality of slavery and gloss over President George Washington's enslavement of people. — Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 21 July 2026

Instead, the government has downplayed the war’s impact, depicting daily life as normal and the stability of the kingdom as unaffected. — Taylor Luck, Christian Science Monitor, 21 July 2026

The automobile industry downplayed the dangerous designs of vehicles and pointed to unsafe drivers instead. — Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 20 July 2026