as in minimizing
to reduce in apparent importance
he self-deprecatingly downplays his own contributions to the festival's success
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Recent Examples of downplaying
Those quotes were used to provide context and avoid downplaying the role of slavery in the Confederate rebellion, according to a former Harpers Ferry media specialist who inserted them.
—
Karin Brulliard, Arkansas Online, 3 Mar. 2026
There is no downplaying what’s happening here.
—Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 1 Mar. 2026
Advertisement As the negotiations advanced, Kushner and Witkoff suspected Iran was downplaying its existing ability to enrich uranium and build advanced centrifuges, according to the two officials.
—Brian Bennett, Time, 28 Feb. 2026
Mamdani came under fire on Tuesday after the president of the Police Benevolent Association -- the union representing the NYPD -- accused the mayor of downplaying the severity of an incident.
—Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
For their part, Wilmore and Williams routinely defended NASA's decision while downplaying their extended stay as being part of the job.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
Although hopeful, other Republicans did not follow the president’s lead in downplaying their loss.
—David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 8 Feb. 2026
But good luck downplaying this moment, because Brown played the same two courses as Scheffler.
—Brody Miller, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2026
LeBron James’ agent, Rich Paul, is downplaying the bombshell report suggesting Los Angeles Lakers Governor Jeanie Buss has grown tired of his client.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 22 Jan. 2026
Karin Brulliard, Arkansas Online, 3 Mar. 2026
There is no downplaying what’s happening here.
—Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 1 Mar. 2026
Advertisement As the negotiations advanced, Kushner and Witkoff suspected Iran was downplaying its existing ability to enrich uranium and build advanced centrifuges, according to the two officials.
—Brian Bennett, Time, 28 Feb. 2026
Mamdani came under fire on Tuesday after the president of the Police Benevolent Association -- the union representing the NYPD -- accused the mayor of downplaying the severity of an incident.
—Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
For their part, Wilmore and Williams routinely defended NASA's decision while downplaying their extended stay as being part of the job.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
Although hopeful, other Republicans did not follow the president’s lead in downplaying their loss.
—David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 8 Feb. 2026
But good luck downplaying this moment, because Brown played the same two courses as Scheffler.
—Brody Miller, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2026
LeBron James’ agent, Rich Paul, is downplaying the bombshell report suggesting Los Angeles Lakers Governor Jeanie Buss has grown tired of his client.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 22 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for downplaying
Verb
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That transition preserves the system’s optical degrees of freedom while minimizing scattering or power loss.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Mar. 2026
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Most of Earth’s surface is covered with water, so the probe’s parts are most likely to hit the ocean—minimizing the risk to humans.—
Jackie Flynn Mogensen,
Scientific American,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Haitian law also forbids dismissing workers for union activities.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Sourcing Journal,
17 Mar. 2026
-
Ferguson took 3-16, dismissing Linde to end the innings.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Downplaying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/downplaying. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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