as in diluting
to alter (something) for the worse with the addition of foreign or lower-grade substances
watered down the cocktails while jacking up their prices
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Recent Examples of watering down
Name, image and likeness money is pulling guys with borderline first-round grades back to school, which is watering down the top of each class.
—
Nick Baumgardner, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
Trump blinked, pausing and watering down many of those tariffs in response to extreme market pressure.
—Matt Egan, CNN Money, 2 Apr. 2026
Some Republicans, however, have expressed caution about watering down districts heading into an election cycle that is historically bad for the party in the White House.
—Lawrence Mower, Miami Herald, 17 Mar. 2026
On Wednesday, The Times reported that Bass was directly involved in watering down the city’s after-action report on the fire, citing unnamed sources.
—David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2026
States that are already watering down or even eliminating vaccine requirements may align with the administration’s decision to neglect and hide the data, contributing to a growing gap between states on vaccine policy, further fragmenting and politicizing decisions that should be based on science.
—Jill Rosenthal, STAT, 14 Jan. 2026
Proxies and acolytes are deployed to the networks to underscore the strength of the president’s stance while subtly watering down threats and reassuring investors.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 13 Oct. 2025
Stop watering down your message to avoid offending anyone.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Nick Baumgardner, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
Trump blinked, pausing and watering down many of those tariffs in response to extreme market pressure.
—Matt Egan, CNN Money, 2 Apr. 2026
Some Republicans, however, have expressed caution about watering down districts heading into an election cycle that is historically bad for the party in the White House.
—Lawrence Mower, Miami Herald, 17 Mar. 2026
On Wednesday, The Times reported that Bass was directly involved in watering down the city’s after-action report on the fire, citing unnamed sources.
—David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2026
States that are already watering down or even eliminating vaccine requirements may align with the administration’s decision to neglect and hide the data, contributing to a growing gap between states on vaccine policy, further fragmenting and politicizing decisions that should be based on science.
—Jill Rosenthal, STAT, 14 Jan. 2026
Proxies and acolytes are deployed to the networks to underscore the strength of the president’s stance while subtly watering down threats and reassuring investors.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 13 Oct. 2025
Stop watering down your message to avoid offending anyone.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for watering down
Verb
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Deter bees from soaking up the nectar by diluting the blend, mixing it with more water than sugar.—
Blythe Copeland,
Martha Stewart,
15 Apr. 2026
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What’s more, the suit alleges that management and company affiliates enriched themselves — through operating fees, development fees, property-management and leasing fees, reimbursements and insider-favoring transactions — while diluting investor equity.—
Jennifer Van Grove,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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King clipped Ramón Urías with a slider, loading the bases.—
Matt Kawahara,
Houston Chronicle,
19 Apr. 2026
-
The Rays had a chance for a potential big inning earlier in the game, loading the bases with two outs in the third.—
LaMond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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This is an unsustainable path if the state hopes to avoid cutting health, education and other priorities.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
11 Apr. 2026
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Another option is to remove some of the pups, by cutting under the plants, and gathering the leaves with roots.—
Tom MacCubbin,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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To some extent, nearly every gas station is polluting the ground beneath it, experts say.—
Ashley Miznazi,
Miami Herald,
9 Apr. 2026
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Millions of gallons a day of raw, untreated sewage and industrial waste flows north through the Tijuana River, across the border, into the Tijuana River Estuary and out into the Pacific — polluting the air as well.—
Walker Armstrong,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
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One standout product included in Amazon's sale is the brand's Flourish Shampoo, specifically designed for thinning hair.—
Tamim Alnuweiri,
InStyle,
11 Apr. 2026
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On Placerville's outskirts, state and local agencies are already thinning out the dense underbrush as another layer of protection.—
Lauren Sommer,
NPR,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The duo’s follow-up project Los Frikis, a drama based on true events about group of punk rockers in ’90s Cuba who cultivate a utopian refuge from society after deliberately infecting themselves with HIV, was similarly lauded.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
30 Mar. 2026
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To pursue that work, Sassetti’s NIH grant paid for collecting blood samples from people in Lima, Peru — who carry a unique immune gene — and then infecting their cells with TB in the lab.—
Megan Molteni,
STAT,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The young woman who sojourned to Oberlin College, where she was wrongfully accused of poisoning her classmates and beaten half to death, who raised her hands in defense of herself, then went on to grip clay and rock and chisel to re-create visions of justice.—
Tyehimba Jess,
ARTnews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
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Protesters, however, say that HERC, which neighbors Target Field near the North Loop neighborhood, is responsible for essentially poisoning people who live nearby.—
Conor Wight,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Watering down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/watering%20down. Accessed 23 Apr. 2026.
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