- past tense form of understate.
- past participle of understate.
understated
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of understated
First recorded in 1935–40; understate + -ed 2
Explanation
Anything that's understated avoids extra decoration or embellishment, like your best friend's understated prom dress, which is somehow more elegant and classic than anyone else's outfit. If your decorating style includes loud colors, lots of knick knacks, big chandeliers, and extra pillows everywhere, nobody is going to describe it as understated. Use this adjective for a restrained, tasteful, and simple style, like your grandma's perfectly understated string of pearls or an actor's beautifully understated interpretation of Hamlet.
Vocabulary lists containing understated
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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.
She explained that keeping the remembrance understated helped her manage the emotions of the day.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026
Audi deliberately kept the S5’s design understated, combining cost-effective body panels with V6-powered performance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
Aside from his stage work, Mandell appeared in several films, where he played understated characters grounded in his work in the theater of the absurd.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
Harryhausen’s influence on later filmmakers, from George Lucas to Tim Burton and on through Wes Anderson, can’t be understated.
From Salon ● Sep. 4, 2026
“Help me to understated: What is the virtue in denying one’s own desires to satisfy another’s will?”
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
