gloss over
Britishverb
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to hide under a deceptively attractive surface or appearance
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to deal with (unpleasant facts) rapidly and cursorily, or to omit them altogether from an account of something
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It was the kind of routine email that employees would normally gloss over.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
Still, the economic vibes people felt were a real thing — and trying to gloss over voters’ concerns was a mistake.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2025
If you’re in early retirement — or close to it — you don’t want to gloss over the announcement of new tax brackets for 2026 as next year’s problem.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 10, 2025
She added: "I'd have stamped on the book I think. Just to gloss over why they ran out of money to me was shocking."
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2025
There was a warder behind each of us, and I decided I would simply gloss over what she had said, and mumbled, “Ah, well, Ma, it is nothing.”
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
