downplay
pronunciation
How to pronounce downplay in British English:
UK [ˌdaʊnˈpleɪ]
How to pronounce downplay in American English:
US [ˈdaʊnˌple]
-
- Verb:
- represent as less significant or important
- understate the importance or quality of
Word Origin
- downplay (v.)
- "de-emphasize," 1968, from down (adv.) + play (v.). Related: Downplayed; downplaying.
Example
- 1. They downplay the chief oddity of this one , which is that foreign forces are fighting it .
- 2. You don 't need to brag , but you also don 't need to downplay your accomplishments or apologize for them .
- 3. But to characterise an industry that 's now responsible for a quarter of all mobile phones on the mainland as a mere counterfeiting operation is to both misunderstand and downplay the significance of the craze .
- 4. We may embellish the 2011 arab spring as the hopeful by-product of the information age , but we should not downplay the primary role of runaway food prices and of the many desperate people who became more hungry than scared .
- 5. As an industry , we must stop trying to downplay aviation 's impact on the environment and engage in real discussions on how we can collectively reduce our footprint in a way that makes sense for travelers , our business and the planet .