Made something seem less important, serious, or noticeable than it actually is.
From 'down' plus 'play' (from Old English 'plegan'). The phrase 'downplay' emerged in the mid-20th century as a metaphor from theater and performance—to play something in a subdued manner.
Politicians and PR experts use 'downplay' constantly to minimize bad news—it's a linguistic strategy for damage control. The word itself shows how many modern verbs come from combining prepositions with simple verbs.
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