make light of

Idioms  

1. Also, make little of. Treat as unimportant, as in He made light of his allergies, or She made little of the fact that she'd won. The first term, which uses light in the sense of “trivial,” was first recorded in William Tyndale's 1526 Bible translation (Matthew 22:5), in the parable of the wedding feast, where the invited guests reject the king's invitation: “They made light of it and went their ways.” The variant dates from the early 1800s. For an antonym, see make much of.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

make light of

Meme coins began as a joke—a way for a burgeoning crypto industry to make light of their own willingness to buy anything digital no matter how questionable they appeared.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

Kaufman stressed: "The defence does not disrespect the soul of any deceased person, nor does it make light of the loss of life."

From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026

Before the Commission's announcement, Elon Musk posted a picture on X on Monday appearing to make light of the new restrictions in place around Grok.

From BBC ● Jan. 26, 2026

That’s not to make light of the interactive experience — which is among the most fun and inspiring activities for children at a local cultural institution — just to note that it’s a fun perk.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 14, 2026

This is the way they might make light of me.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer

Related Words

• curtail
• decrease
• diminish
• downplay
• lessen
• play down
• reduce
• trivialize
• underestimate