downplay

Related to downplay: play down

down·play

(doun′plā′)

tr.v. down·played, down·play·ing, down·plays

To minimize the significance of; play down: downplayed the bad news.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

downplay

(ˈdaʊnˌpleɪ)

(tr) to play down; make little of

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

down•play

(ˈdaʊnˌpleɪ)

v.t.

to represent as unimportant, insignificant, etc.; minimize; belittle.

[1950–55]

downplay

Past participle: downplayed
Gerund: downplaying

Imperative
downplay
downplay

Present
I downplay
you downplay
he/she/it downplays
we downplay
you downplay
they downplay

Preterite
I downplayed
you downplayed
he/she/it downplayed
we downplayed
you downplayed
they downplayed

Present Continuous
I am downplaying
you are downplaying
he/she/it is downplaying
we are downplaying
you are downplaying
they are downplaying

Present Perfect
I have downplayed
you have downplayed
he/she/it has downplayed
we have downplayed
you have downplayed
they have downplayed

Past Continuous
I was downplaying
you were downplaying
he/she/it was downplaying
we were downplaying
you were downplaying
they were downplaying

Past Perfect
I had downplayed
you had downplayed
he/she/it had downplayed
we had downplayed
you had downplayed
they had downplayed

Future
I will downplay
you will downplay
he/she/it will downplay
we will downplay
you will downplay
they will downplay

Future Perfect
I will have downplayed
you will have downplayed
he/she/it will have downplayed
we will have downplayed
you will have downplayed
they will have downplayed

Future Continuous
I will be downplaying
you will be downplaying
he/she/it will be downplaying
we will be downplaying
you will be downplaying
they will be downplaying

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been downplaying
you have been downplaying
he/she/it has been downplaying
we have been downplaying
you have been downplaying
they have been downplaying

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been downplaying
you will have been downplaying
he/she/it will have been downplaying
we will have been downplaying
you will have been downplaying
they will have been downplaying

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been downplaying
you had been downplaying
he/she/it had been downplaying
we had been downplaying
you had been downplaying
they had been downplaying

Conditional
I would downplay
you would downplay
he/she/it would downplay
we would downplay
you would downplay
they would downplay

Past Conditional
I would have downplayed
you would have downplayed
he/she/it would have downplayed
we would have downplayed
you would have downplayed
they would have downplayed

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Verb	1.	downplay - represent as less significant or important minimise, understate, minimize inform - impart knowledge of some fact, state or affairs, or event to; "I informed him of his rights" trivialise, trivialize - make trivial or insignificant; "Don't trivialize the seriousness of the issue!"
	2.	downplay - understate the importance or quality of; "he played down his royal ancestry" background, play down wave off - dismiss as insignificant; "He waved off suggestions of impropriety" soft-pedal - play down or obscure; "His advisers soft-pedaled the president's blunder" accent, accentuate, emphasize, stress, punctuate, emphasise - to stress, single out as important; "Dr. Jones emphasizes exercise in addition to a change in diet"

downplay

verb soft-pedal, play down The government are trying to downplay the violence which broke out yesterday.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

downplay

[ˈdaʊnˈpleɪ] VT → quitar importancia a, restar importancia a

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

downplay

[ˌdaʊnˈpleɪ] vt (= play down) [+ fact, feature] → minimiser; [+ importance] → minimiser

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

downplay

[ˈdaʊnˌpleɪ] vt (Am) → minimizzare

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

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