Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

downplay

/ˈdaʊ̯nˌpleɪ̯/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 2.91 in modern English

Syllables: down-play
IPA: /ˈdaʊ̯nˌpleɪ̯/

17

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

2

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To de-emphasize; to present or portray as less important or consequential.

Transitive verb

Example Sentences

"The Killing of a Chinese Bookie is no ordinary thriller. John Cassavetes, as usual, downplays the plot, opting for character and endless improvisation, but it does not entirely work in this setting."
"[Milo] Yiannopoulos, whose own career as a far-right pundit imploded in 2017 after remarks he had made downplaying the seriousness of pedophilia surfaced, claims he has more damaging videos to release about [Ali] Alexander and [Nick] Fuentes."

Etymology

Synthetic form of the phrase play down. By surface analysis, down- + play.

Usage

Transitive verb

Inflected Forms

downplays (present, singular) downplaying (participle, present) downplayed (participle, past) downplayed (past)

Derived Forms

downplayer

Synonyms

play down trivialize understate bagatellize banalize belittle cut down de-emphasize denigrate degrade deprecate derogate

Questions

How do you pronounce downplay?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈdaʊ̯nˌpleɪ̯/.
What does downplay mean?: To de-emphasize; to present or portray as less important or consequential.
Where does downplay come from?: Synthetic form of the phrase play down. By surface analysis, down- + play.

How to pronounce downplay

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “downplay”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈdaʊ̯nˌpleɪ̯/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “downplay”.
Repeat and practice — Say “downplay” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.