lowball

low-ball or low·ball (lbôl)

tr.v. low-balled or low·balled, low-bal·ling or low·bal·ling, low-balls or low·balls Slang

To underestimate or understate (a cost) deliberately: "He often took illegal cash payments from developers in return for . . . low-balling the cost of construction and renovation work" (Boston Globe).

---

[From the card game of the same name.]

---

low-ball adj.

---

lowball [ˈləʊˌbɔːl]

n

1. (Group Games / Card Games) a game of poker in which the player with the lowest hand wins

2. (Business / Commerce)

a.  a very low estimate or offer

b.  (as modifier) a lowball bid

vb (tr)

(Business / Commerce) to make a very low estimate or offer for (a service, product, company, etc.)

Thesaurus

Verb

1.

lowball - make a deliberately low estimate; "The construction company wanted the contract badly and lowballed" underestimate estimate, gauge, approximate, guess, judge - judge tentatively or form an estimate of (quantities or time); "I estimate this chicken to weigh three pounds"