play down

British  

verb

1. (tr, adverb) to make little or light of; minimize the importance of

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play down Idioms  

1. Make little of, minimize the importance of, as in A skillful salesman plays down the drawbacks of the product and emphasizes its good features . [First half of 1900s]

2. play down to . Lower one's standards to meet the demands of someone, as in Some stand-up comics deliberately play down to the vulgar taste of their audiences . [Late 1800s]

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Example Sentences

But he appeared to play down the significance of the stockpile, pointing to the damage caused in US-Israeli strikes last June.

From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026

Sir Keir sought to play down the rift on Monday, adding that American and British security officials were "working together every single day, as they always have".

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

Executives also play down the risks of disruption.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

Shares in AppLovin slid 20% even after the advertising software company sought to play down AI worries as it released earnings.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026

Such narratives do not play down the epistemological problem of moving from the specific to the universal; they accentuate it.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• belittle
• gloss over
• minimize
• mute
• soft pedal
• soften
• underplay