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- Dictionaryunderstate/ˌʌndəˈsteɪt/
verb
- 1. describe or represent (something) as being smaller or less good or important than it really is: "the press have understated the extent of the problem"
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UNDERSTATE definition: 1. to describe something in a way that makes it seem less important, serious, bad, etc. than it…. Learn more.
The meaning of UNDERSTATE is to represent as less than is the case. How to use understate in a sentence.
If you understate something, you describe it in a way that suggests that it is less important or serious than it really is.
Nov 8, 2017 · Definition of understate verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. understate something to state that something is smaller, less important or less serious than it really is. It would be a mistake to understate the seriousness of the problem. The figures probably understate the real unemployment rate.
UNDERSTATE meaning: 1. to describe something in a way that makes it seem less important, serious, bad, etc. than it…. Learn more.
One way to think about the verb understate is as the opposite of "exaggerate." If you want to make something seem smaller or less important than it really is, you're likely to understate it.
Nov 7, 2024 · understate (third-person singular simple present understates, present participle understating, simple past and past participle understated) To state (something) with less completeness than needed; to minimise or downplay.
If you understate something, you describe it in a way that suggests that it is less important or serious than it really is. [...]
The earliest known use of the verb understate is in the 1820s. OED's earliest evidence for understate is from 1824, in the writing of James Mackintosh, political writer and politician. understate is formed within English, by derivation.
UNDERSTATE meaning: to say that (something) is smaller, less important, etc., than it really is