talk down

verb

1. to behave (towards) in a superior or haughty manner

2. (tr) to override (a person or argument) by continuous or loud talking

3. (tr) to give instructions to (an aircraft) by radio to enable it to land

Idioms and Phrases

Belittle, depreciate, as in They talked down the importance of the move .

Silence someone by speaking loudly and persistently, as in They talked down whatever objections she brought up . [Early 1800s]

Help an aircraft to land by giving directions via radio, as in The fog was so thick the control tower had to talk us down . [c. 1940]

See talk down to .

Example Sentences

Energy Secretary Chris Wright appears “less focused on talking down prices and more on rebuilding a pillar of support through steady buying,” she said, so that shift in posture likely contributed to Wednesday’s bounce.

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A father will regularly dismiss, talk down to or belittle his offspring.

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Honoré tried to be a steadying force in a misinformation maelstrom and found himself veering between comforting the sickly and frightened and talking down heavily armed military forces training their guns on harmless flood victims.

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"We feel like we're being talked down to like stupid children."

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The piece talked down to Roan and diminished her requests as childish and unthinking — ironic for something as petulant as the column reads.

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