underestimate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
underestimates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
underestimated,
past participle, past
-
underestimating
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
underestimates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
underestimated,
past participle, past
-
underestimating
present participle
noun
-
underestimates
plural
verb
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to make too low an estimate of
he underestimated the cost
-
to think insufficiently highly of
to underestimate a person
noun
Usage
Underestimate is sometimes wrongly used where overestimate is meant: the importance of his work cannot be overestimated (not cannot be underestimated )
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
underestimatesimple
-
underestimatessimple
-
have underestimatedperfect
-
has underestimatedperfect
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am underestimatingprogressive
-
are underestimatingprogressive
-
is underestimatingprogressive
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have been underestimatingperfect progressive
-
has been underestimatingperfect progressive
Past
-
underestimatedsimple
-
had underestimatedperfect
-
was underestimatingprogressive
-
were underestimatingprogressive
-
had been underestimatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of underestimate
Explanation
To underestimate is to guess that something is worth less or is smaller than it really is. You might underestimate the size of a one-pound hamburger until you realize it's too big to fit in your stomach. When you "estimate" you take a guess at something, and when you underestimate, your guess falls short or below. If you underestimate how much something costs, you might show up at a store without enough money, and if you underestimate the strength of an opponent who is small, you might find yourself on the ground wondering what hit you. Often when we "assume" something, we make a guess based on how things appear — that's one way to underestimate.
Vocabulary lists containing underestimate
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When Stars Are Scattered
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Out of My Mind
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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.
See Examples For:
“People may underestimate wind and solar power,” Cena says in one ad, describing industry job creation as he calmly defeats several grizzly bears in a tug-of-war.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Their analysis found that conventional assessments underestimate total heat exposure by more than 150% on average, a difference that could have important consequences for understanding ecosystem health.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026
That’s an important consideration for retirees, who often underestimate their long-term costs.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026
The group warned that while globally the number of documented killings had gone down from 146 in 2024 to 128 in 2025, its numbers were probably an underestimate as many cases went unreported.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
“I do. Don’t underestimate your teammates, Silas. That’s the same thing I said to you about your parents. Don’t underestimate the Renegades; don’t underestimate Gil and Erica.”
From "A High Five for Glenn Burke" by Phil Bildner
Although this condition is linked to a wide variety of negative health effects, the public chronically underestimates its seriousness.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 23, 2026
“Their greatest advantage is that the Western world underestimates them.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
That there are really only two options for communication vastly underestimates dogs’ communicative potential.
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2026
But that assessment underestimates both the man and the moment.
From Barron's ● May 6, 2026
Arguably, Mauer underestimates the scope of the challenge by focusing narrowly on the prison system, rather than counting all of the people employed in the criminal justice bureaucracy.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
Value-added taxes were also missing their targets, the memo said, while the cost of government spending had been underestimated by 3 billion euros.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Canadians have never felt quite safe with America, while Americans have consistently misunderstood and underestimated the enormous land to the north.
From Salon ● Aug. 31, 2026
Fong admitted she had "underestimated" the risk Cookie posed.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Analysts had anticipated a win for Farage but underestimated the appeal of the self-styled "intergalactic space warrior" from planet Sigma IX, who campaigns wearing a rubbish bin on his head.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
Some of NAWSA’s officials began to worry that the Washington police had badly underestimated how many people would be lining the city’s streets the next day, watching the parade.
From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler
Fashion giants on both sides of the Atlantic are underestimating the Chinese shopper at their own peril.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
“While gold and silver have rebounded in recent weeks, we continue to believe the market is underestimating the implications of growing fiscal deficits, elevated debt levels, and currency debasement,” the analysts say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
A major reason for von Ahlen’s call is that he thinks the market is underestimating the relative weakness of the U.K. economy.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
"That is why we are committed to progressing in a collaborative way, whilst not underestimating the considerable challenges ahead, and providing stability for all at the earliest opportunity."
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
He was always getting himself into trouble—as, for instance, by unhorsing the Orkneys at Westminster—through underestimating the wickedness of the world.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
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.
