downplay
/ˌdaʊnˈpleɪ/verb
उच्चारण डाउन्प्ले
कम करके आँकना, महत्व घटाकर बताना, हल्का करके दिखाना
Core word
- 1
[T] ~ sth
to make people think that something is less important or serious than it really is
कम करके आँकना, महत्व घटाकर बताना, हल्का करके दिखाना
- The company tried to downplay the risks of the project.
- Officials downplayed reports of a water shortage.
- The minister tried to downplay the seriousness of the accident.
+ 2 more examples
- Never downplay your achievements in an interview.
- The coach downplayed the injury, saying it was only a small strain.
Synonyms play down minimise understate belittle trivialise
Opposite emphasise exaggerate overstate highlight
§Structures (grammar patterns) 4
downplay + noun / noun phrase
Downplay is a transitive verb: it always needs an object, the thing whose importance is being reduced.
'Downplay' सकर्मक (transitive) क्रिया है; इसके बाद वह चीज़ आती है जिसका महत्व कम करके दिखाया जा रहा है।
- The minister tried to downplay the seriousness of the flood.
- Radhika downplayed her own role in the school's victory.
downplay + the fact that / the importance of
You can follow it with a noun phrase such as the importance of, the role of or the risk of, or with the fact that.
इसके बाद the importance of, the role of, the risk of जैसे noun phrase या the fact that आ सकता है।
- The company downplayed the risk of a data leak.
- He downplayed the fact that he had failed twice before.
be downplayed (passive)
The passive is common in news reports when someone else is making a matter look small.
समाचारों में जब कोई और किसी बात को छोटा दिखाता है, तब passive रूप आम है।
- The losses were downplayed in the annual report.
downplay + gerund (rare)
It is not followed by a to-infinitive; to talk about an action, use the importance of plus a gerund.
'Downplay' के बाद to-infinitive नहीं आता; किसी काम के लिए 'the importance of + gerund' का प्रयोग करें।
- Teachers should not downplay the importance of revising regularly.
+Collocations 4
downplay + noun
importancesignificanceroleriskthreatseriousness
- Officials downplayed the threat of the cyclone in the first bulletin.
adverb + downplay
deliberatelyconsistentlyrepeatedlypubliclyheavily
- The spokesperson repeatedly downplayed the rumours.
tend / try / seek + to downplay
tendtryseekattemptbe accused of
- Some companies are accused of downplaying the side effects of their products.
downplay + achievement / problem
successachievementsetbackdifferenceconcern
- Radhika downplayed her success so that her friend would not feel bad.
“More examples 5
- The captain downplayed the injury and said he would be fit for the final.
कप्तान ने चोट को मामूली बताया और कहा कि वह फाइनल के लिए fit हो जाएगा।
- Newspapers sometimes downplay good news about government schemes.
समाचारपत्र कभी-कभी सरकारी योजनाओं की अच्छी खबरों को कम महत्व देते हैं।
- She downplayed her marks, saying that the paper had been easy.
उसने अपने अंकों को कम करके बताया और कहा कि प्रश्नपत्र आसान था।
- It would be unwise to downplay the dangers of travelling on a flooded road.
बाढ़ से भरी सड़क पर यात्रा के खतरों को कम आँकना समझदारी नहीं होगी।
- The bank downplayed the problem, but customers were still worried.
बैंक ने समस्या को छोटा बताया, फिर भी ग्राहक चिंतित थे।
!Common mistakes 2
✗ The manager downplayed about the delay in the project.
✓ The manager downplayed the delay in the project.
Downplay is a transitive verb and takes its object directly, with no preposition.
'Downplay' सकर्मक क्रिया है, इसलिए object सीधे आता है; बीच में about नहीं लगता।
✗ He downplayed to mention his earlier failures.
✓ He downplayed his earlier failures.
Downplay cannot be followed by a to-infinitive; it needs a noun object.
'Downplay' के बाद to-infinitive नहीं आ सकता; इसके बाद noun object चाहिए।
≠Thesaurus: which synonym when
All of these reduce how important something seems, but they differ in whether the speaker is being honest or deceptive.
ये सभी किसी बात का महत्व कम दिखाते हैं, पर इनमें वक्ता की नीयत (ईमानदार या भ्रामक) का अंतर होता है।
To make something seem less important than it is, often on purpose.
किसी बात को वास्तविकता से कम महत्वपूर्ण दिखाना, प्रायः जानबूझकर।
- The company downplayed the fault in its cars.
To describe something as smaller or less serious than it is; slightly more formal and can be accidental.
किसी बात को वास्तविक से छोटा या कम गंभीर बताना; थोड़ा अधिक formal और अनजाने में भी हो सकता है।
- The figures understate the real number of unemployed people.
To speak of a person or their work as unimportant, usually in an unkind way.
किसी व्यक्ति या उसके काम को तुच्छ बताना, प्रायः अपमानजनक ढंग से।
- Do not belittle your classmate's efforts.
≈Synonyms and antonyms
Synonyms
play down minimise understate belittle trivialise
Antonyms
emphasise exaggerate overstate highlight
§Grammar and usage
Usage: downplay and the phrasal verb play down mean the same, and the opposite idea is to emphasise, highlight or play up something.
Usage में downplay और phrasal verb play down का अर्थ एक ही है, और इसका विपरीत भाव किसी चीज़ को emphasise, highlight या play up करना है।