as in downplayed
to reduce in apparent importance
she politely tries to soft-pedal her accomplishments when talking to less fortunate people
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Recent Examples of soft-pedaled
In fact, several of the investigators believed the shooting was intentional, and that the Biden administration had actually soft-pedaled the investigation’s findings to appease Israel.
—
Scott Griffen, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Scott Griffen, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for soft-pedaled
Verb
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Last week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt downplayed the significance of an Iran-Russia intelligence partnership and said that any Russian assistance had not changed the battlefield dynamics, pointing to operations that have significantly degraded Iranian capabilities.—
Claire Carter,
The Washington Examiner,
8 Mar. 2026
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And not only downplayed but dismissed, in some cases, buried.—
Scott Pelley,
CBS News,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
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From there Crochet regrouped and minimized the damage, drawing a run-scoring double play and a flyout to keep it a 2-0 game.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
9 Mar. 2026
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But to re-examine them with the benefit of distance — to see what was emphasized, what was minimized, what might have been left unsaid.—
Amisha Padnani,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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After the allegations against his son, the official was dismissed from his post, according to a decision published Wednesday in the state government’s official gazette.—
Eléonore Hughes,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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Figures in the main opposition Republican People’s Party, known by its Turkish initials CHP, have dismissed the charges as politically motivated.—
Beril Akman,
Bloomberg,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The changes have included an overhaul of Google’s ubiquitous search engine that has de-emphasized a listing of relevant web links in its results and increasingly highlighted AI overviews and conversational responses provided through an AI mode.—
Michael Liedtke,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Soft-pedaled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/soft-pedaled. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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