belittle

/bi'litl/

Definition

Verb:
- To make someone or something seem less impressive or important: To speak about or treat a person, their achievements, or a thing in a way that makes them appear less valuable or significant.
- To express a negative or dismissive opinion of: To criticize or disparage someone or something, often unfairly or without full consideration.

Examples of Usage

Verb:
- He tends to belittle the contributions of his team members. (He often makes his team members' contributions seem unimportant.)
- It is unprofessional to belittle a colleague in a meeting. (It is unprofessional to speak dismissively about a colleague in a meeting.)
- She felt belittled by his constant criticism. (She felt her worth was diminished by his constant criticism.)

Advanced Usage

"to belittle oneself": To undervalue or speak poorly of one's own abilities or achievements.
- You have great skills; don't belittle yourself. (You have great skills; do not make them seem less than they are.)
"to belittle the importance of": To treat something as trivial or not serious.
- We should not belittle the importance of mental health. (We should not treat mental health as unimportant.)

Variants and Related Words

Belittlement (n): The action of belittling someone or something.
- His constant belittlement of her work was demoralizing. (His continuous act of making her work seem unimportant lowered her morale.)
Belittling (adj): Describing language or behavior that makes someone or something seem unimportant.
- She made a belittling remark about his idea. (She made a comment that diminished the value of his idea.)

Synonyms

Disparage: To regard or represent as being of little worth.
Diminish: To make or cause to seem less important or valuable.
Demean: To cause a severe loss in the dignity of and respect for someone or something.
Minimize: To represent or estimate at less than the true value or importance.

Antonyms

Related Phrases

Play down: To minimize the importance of; to make something seem less serious. (This is a synonym in the context of causing something to seem less serious.)
- The company tried to play down the significance of the data breach. (The company tried to make the data breach seem less serious.)
Talk down to: To speak to someone in a condescending or patronizing manner, which can be a form of belittling.
- He always talks down to the interns, which belittles their potential. (He always speaks to the interns as if they are less intelligent, which diminishes their perceived potential.)

Verb

lessen the authority, dignity, or reputation of
- don't belittle your colleagues
express a negative opinion of
- She disparaged her student's efforts
cause to seem less serious; play down
- Don't belittle his influence

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