as in to dismiss
to express scornfully one's low opinion of
a company that prefers to talk up its own products rather than talk down those of its competitors
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of talk down
Kirk does not talk down to the reader, and that is a feat.
—
Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 22 Dec. 2025
Forever captures the rush and confusion of first love without talking down to its audience.
—Okla Jones, Essence, 14 Dec. 2025
When reminded that there is a trip to Las Vegas involved, Hayes didn’t hesitate to talk down any excitement for that.
—Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Nov. 2025
The show never talks down to the audience.
—Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for talk down
Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 22 Dec. 2025
Forever captures the rush and confusion of first love without talking down to its audience.
—Okla Jones, Essence, 14 Dec. 2025
When reminded that there is a trip to Las Vegas involved, Hayes didn’t hesitate to talk down any excitement for that.
—Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Nov. 2025
The show never talks down to the audience.
—Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for talk down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for talk down
Verb
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Advertisement Then there’s the controversy sparked by celebrity podcasters Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, who dismissed Crockett's Senate bid as pointless.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
26 Feb. 2026
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Amorim was dismissed following a 1-1 draw with Leeds United on January 5 after a breakdown in relations behind the scenes.—
Mark Critchley,
New York Times,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
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To say that these photographs played a major role in defining an Argentinian national identity seems to minimize how European, most notably Italian, standards of glamour influenced the appearance of these images.—
Bryan Barcena,
Artforum,
1 Mar. 2026
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Once stationary, deactivate all lights except the hazard flashers, engage the emergency brake, and release the brake pedal to ensure your tail lights remain unlit, minimizing the chance of other drivers colliding with your stationary vehicle.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
1 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Extensive research shows that insufficient sleep is associated with impaired cognitive function, chronic health problems, diminished productivity and an increase in traffic accidents, just to name a few.—
Stephen Neely,
The Conversation,
3 Mar. 2026
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One concern is cognitive offloading, in which decision-makers defer too readily to algorithmic recommendations, effectively diminishing human accountability for strategic choices.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Sanchez started with a sheer white base for this extra-long manicure and finished it with a striking silver chrome tip, extended into a delicate line design running down each nail.—
Kara Jillian Brown,
InStyle,
26 Feb. 2026
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All of the snow over the past week, which helped struggling ski resorts around Lake Tahoe increase their totals, will slowly melt in late spring and summer, running down rivers, with some being captured in reservoirs.—
Paul Rogers,
Mercury News,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has played down the violence as the work of a small group of extremists.—
Julia Frankel,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Feb. 2026
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The Hornets lost 105-101 to Houston on Thursday night before a sellout crowd, with the 37-year-old Durant scoring a game-high 35 points and making every big play down the stretch.—
Scott Fowler,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Talk down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/talk%20down. Accessed 4 Mar. 2026.
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