as in minimized
to place too low a value on
we had underestimated her ability to raise the start-up money for her own design firm
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Recent Examples of underestimated
Being underestimated became part of the education.
—
Parin Moradiya, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2026
The next time new science reveals that a chemical is much more toxic, or that the amount of pollution released from a factory had been underestimated and would cause legally unacceptable health risks, the agency would not be able to react.
—Lisa Song, ProPublica, 7 Jan. 2026
What researchers call familiness is frequently underestimated or treated as a weakness to overcome, as if family involvement were a liability rather than a strength.
—Josh Baron, Harvard Business Review, 7 Jan. 2026
Crawford also spoke about the prefight narrative and how, in his opinion, he was underestimated.
—Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2026
Biased algorithms are beginning to erase the middle-income rungs of the economic ladder—the very administrative and operational roles that underestimated groups have historically used to gain a foothold in the middle class.
—Katica Roy, Fortune, 31 Dec. 2025
After being ostracized and underestimated by the aliens for so long, Spider is finally welcomed into the Na’vi family, and the movie abruptly cuts to black.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 20 Dec. 2025
Shame on anyone who initially underestimated the chances of this adaptation of the Mary Shelley novel.
—Jenelle Riley, Variety, 17 Dec. 2025
As an entrepreneur and university founder and president, I was ignored in the early days, brushed aside and underestimated.
—Fairchild Studio, Footwear News, 13 Dec. 2025
Parin Moradiya, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2026
The next time new science reveals that a chemical is much more toxic, or that the amount of pollution released from a factory had been underestimated and would cause legally unacceptable health risks, the agency would not be able to react.
—Lisa Song, ProPublica, 7 Jan. 2026
What researchers call familiness is frequently underestimated or treated as a weakness to overcome, as if family involvement were a liability rather than a strength.
—Josh Baron, Harvard Business Review, 7 Jan. 2026
Crawford also spoke about the prefight narrative and how, in his opinion, he was underestimated.
—Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2026
Biased algorithms are beginning to erase the middle-income rungs of the economic ladder—the very administrative and operational roles that underestimated groups have historically used to gain a foothold in the middle class.
—Katica Roy, Fortune, 31 Dec. 2025
After being ostracized and underestimated by the aliens for so long, Spider is finally welcomed into the Na’vi family, and the movie abruptly cuts to black.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 20 Dec. 2025
Shame on anyone who initially underestimated the chances of this adaptation of the Mary Shelley novel.
—Jenelle Riley, Variety, 17 Dec. 2025
As an entrepreneur and university founder and president, I was ignored in the early days, brushed aside and underestimated.
—Fairchild Studio, Footwear News, 13 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for underestimated
Verb
-
Cruz and other Republicans argued the decision minimized the gravity of an attack on the judiciary and could encourage future political violence.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Women’s concerns are often minimized or brushed aside, making this an especially difficult area to navigate.—
Korin Miller,
Flow Space,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Big men who defend, rebound, pass and play with force don’t stay undervalued forever.—
C.J. Holmes,
New York Daily News,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Obviously her life is very different from Claire, but did Kate Hudson relate to feeling undervalued or misjudged?—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Bates is such a force of nature in this flick that the near-Hitchcockian manner in which Reiner does the best directorial work of his career was underrated.—
Brian Tallerico,
Vulture,
15 Dec. 2025
-
Jackson was discounted, misunderstood, and underrated for most of those eight years, until his second- place finish in the Democratic primary in 1988 changed that.—
Abby Phillip,
Time,
4 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Underestimated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/underestimated. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
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