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
Politically, this strategy of watering down her own initiatives to avoid alienating interest groups might have worked, if not for the fires.
—
Marc Novicoff, The Atlantic, 31 May 2026
The challenge is to keep the language simple without watering down the issue.
—Aisha Nyandoro, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
Dress the salad right before serving to prevent the melon and cucumbers from watering down the vinaigrette.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 23 May 2026
But watering down safe Republican seats in a tough year for the incumbent party, could backfire, some have predicted.
—Alexandra Glorioso, Miami Herald, 27 Apr. 2026
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
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
Marc Novicoff, The Atlantic, 31 May 2026
The challenge is to keep the language simple without watering down the issue.
—Aisha Nyandoro, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
Dress the salad right before serving to prevent the melon and cucumbers from watering down the vinaigrette.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 23 May 2026
But watering down safe Republican seats in a tough year for the incumbent party, could backfire, some have predicted.
—Alexandra Glorioso, Miami Herald, 27 Apr. 2026
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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for watering down
Verb
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In his letter, Markey said using surplus plutonium to produce energy would be significantly more expensive than diluting and disposing of it — the method the federal government was previously using to deal with the waste.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
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Last quarter , the narrative against Palo Alto Networks was all its dealmaking was diluting earnings too much.—
Jeff Marks,
CNBC,
2 June 2026
Verb
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Sandwich had to switch pitchers in the eighth inning, and Hamilton-Wenham responded by loading the bases with no outs.—
Tom Mulherin,
Boston Herald,
8 June 2026
-
The Mets put pressure on Vasquez by loading the bases with no outs.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
7 June 2026
Verb
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There is also more cutting required of bloomed flowers to initiate another flush, and more cleaning up and cutting secondary branches in spring.—
Kait Hanson,
Southern Living,
6 June 2026
-
Barr rightly notes that current capital standards were already near the low end of what academic research identifies as optimal; cutting further tips the balance toward fragility, not strength.—
Mayra Rodriguez Valladares,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2026
Verb
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But across Oklahoma, the fluid is spreading uncontrollably belowground, blasting out of old, unplugged wells, polluting land and contaminating drinking water.—
Katie Campbell,
ProPublica,
2 June 2026
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The city had rezoned the area allowing polluting heavy industry to proliferate the community.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
Verb
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Clover tends to pop up in areas where the lawn is thinning or brown and attracts pollinators like bees.—
David Beaulieu,
The Spruce,
6 June 2026
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For one, the event was sparsely attended, highlighting the dearth of foreign visitors and the thinning ranks of bankers, executives, and investors in the city.—
Mohammed Sergie,
semafor.com,
4 June 2026
Verb
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While the fly is capable of infecting humans and pets, such cases are rare and pose little risk to the broader public, according to experts.—
David Hickey,
NBC news,
4 June 2026
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She is allowed to roam only within a limited tolerance zone to avoid infecting cattle.—
The Conversation,
The Conversation,
4 June 2026
Verb
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Symptoms of salmonella poisoning Symptoms of salmonella poisoning usually start six hours to six days after ingesting the bacteria.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
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Four people have died in California as a result of the amatoxin poisoning outbreak.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
1 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Watering down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/watering%20down. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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