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Synonyms

smooth over

British  

verb

  1. (tr) to ease or gloss over

    to smooth over a situation

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

smooth over Idioms  
  1. Rid of obstructions or difficulties, as in We tried to smooth things over between the families before the wedding but did not succeed. [Late 1600s]


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:

As CFO of Comcast, he often was able to smooth over tensions that Roberts sometimes caused with other companies with his tough negotiating stance, said people familiar with the situation.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 30, 2026

The mea culpa was well-received by the trio and underscored Cora’s ability to smooth over even the most awkward situations.

From Los Angeles Times May 1, 2026

Torrenting was also fast and smooth over ExpressVPN.

From Salon Mar. 13, 2026

Though they later held meetings to smooth over their differences, the network is again livid following the reauthorization of German agrochemical giant Bayer's dicamba herbicide for sprayed use on genetically modified soybean and cotton.

From Barron's Feb. 16, 2026

He used to have an old worn-out blankie he’d smooth over and over whenever he was scared or nervous.

From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan

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