as in to simplify
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Recent Examples of dumb down
This is clearly an assault on learning by the White House and an attempt to dumb down the national population.
—
Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 20 July 2025
State and local leaders should also roll back any guidance that is meant to force teachers to dumb down curriculums or provide passing grades to students who are failing or inflate grades across the board.
—Carrie Lukas, Forbes.com, 9 July 2025
Build authentic LinkedIn content: skip the AI shortcuts Don't let AI dumb down your message.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
Why dumb down what was once a sophisticated and nuanced show?
—Rich Heldenfels, Boston Herald, 9 Mar. 2025
The company wanted to ensure that amateurs could safely explore the car’s uncanny capabilities but didn’t want to dumb down the thrills.
—IEEE Spectrum, 28 Mar. 2011
Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 20 July 2025
State and local leaders should also roll back any guidance that is meant to force teachers to dumb down curriculums or provide passing grades to students who are failing or inflate grades across the board.
—Carrie Lukas, Forbes.com, 9 July 2025
Build authentic LinkedIn content: skip the AI shortcuts Don't let AI dumb down your message.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
Why dumb down what was once a sophisticated and nuanced show?
—Rich Heldenfels, Boston Herald, 9 Mar. 2025
The company wanted to ensure that amateurs could safely explore the car’s uncanny capabilities but didn’t want to dumb down the thrills.
—IEEE Spectrum, 28 Mar. 2011
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dumb down
Verb
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The upright positioning also simplifies maintenance by leaving walkable space between panel rows.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
25 Sep. 2025
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Modern versions of the recipe rely on a candy thermometer and timers to eliminate guesswork and a mixer to keep things moving, simplifying the process at every step, making Deal Island Devil Cream a recipe that fans of classic Southern layer cakes should add to their collection.—
Sheri Castle,
Southern Living,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) expressed similar concern about the dangers of oversimplifying treatment.—
Alice Park,
Time,
23 Sep. 2025
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Viewing their actions and ideas strictly through a Cold War lens has oversimplified Korean hopes and ambitions and flattened the complexity of their post-liberation experience.—
Kornel Chang
September 19,
Literary Hub,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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As Big Ten rivals Michigan and then Ohio State won national titles, Penn State was still getting its NIL house in order, consolidating its funding, streamlining its operations, aligning its power players and making Happy Valley an appealing and lucrative place for top talent to come — and stay.—
Ralph D. Russo,
New York Times,
24 Sep. 2025
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In recent months, EOIR leadership has criticized judges for not efficiently managing their caseloads, and has encouraged adjudicators to streamline asylum reviews and give oral, as opposed to written, decisions on case dismissals.—
Ximena Bustillo,
NPR,
23 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dumb down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dumb%20down. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
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