laugh off

verb

1. (tr, adverb) to treat or dismiss lightly, esp with stoicism

   he laughed off his injuries

Idioms and Phrases

Also, laugh away. Dismiss as ridiculous or trivial, as in He laughed off the suggestion that his career was over. [Early 1700s]

Example Sentences

Akimoto laughed off the suggestion, but expressed frustration about technology's ability to mine data and find the "maximum common denominator".

From BBC

Barely a year ago, Alvarez laughed off the idea of facing Crawford, saying he was too small, too risky and there was nothing to gain.

From BBC

And however the remake fares with fans, one household won't be picking up a new copy - Kojima himself has laughed off the suggestion that he would play the new game.

From BBC

Zeldin was less willing to laugh off the concerns of cranks.

From Salon

News outlets are spreading Trump’s out-of-proportion response to something he could’ve just laughed off, while “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” just aired a parody song to the tune of “Macho Man” titled — what else?

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• discount 
• disregard 
• ignore 
• overlook 
• reject 
• spurn 
• underestimate