belittle

English

Etymology

From be- +‎ little. Coined by Thomas Jefferson in 1782

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /bɪˈlɪt.əl/

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  Rhymes: -ɪtəl

Verb

belittle (third-person singular simple present belittles, present participle belittling, simple past and past participle belittled)

1. (transitive) To knowingly say that something is smaller or less important than it actually is, especially as a way of showing contempt or deprecation.

   Synonyms: understate, make light of, denigrate, degrade, deprecate, disparage, downplay, play down, trivialize, bagatellize

   Antonym: exaggerate

   Don't belittle your colleagues.

   • 1941 March, “Notes and News: Underestimating the Enemy's Strength”, in Railway Magazine, page 129:

     An essential part of any German campaign is obviously the efficiency of its lines of communication and therefore it is dangerous to belittle our enemy's strength in this direction.

   • 2006, Mark Steyn, chapter 9, in America Alone: The End of the World as We Know It, →ISBN, page 201:

     Under the rules as understood by the New York Times, the West is free to mock and belittle its Judeo-Christian inheritance, and, likewise, the Muslim world is free to mock and belittle the West's Judeo-Christian inheritance.

2. (transitive) To make small.
   • 2022, Ian McEwan, Lessons, page 357:

     Now, the big blue space of river and sky belittled him, ulled him back into bewildered childhood.

Derived terms

• belittled
• belittlement
• belittling

Translations

See also

• vilipend
• cut down

References