soft-ped·al (sôft p dl, s ft-)tr.v. soft-ped·aled or soft-ped·alled, soft-ped·al·ing or soft-ped·al·ling, soft-ped·als 1. Music To soften or mute the tone of by depressing the soft pedal. 2. Informal To make less emphatic or obvious; play down: soft-pedal a potentially explosive issue. |
soft-pedal
Verb
[-alling, -alled] or US [-aling, -aled]
to deliberately avoid emphasizing (something): he was soft-pedalling the question of tax increases
Noun
soft pedal
a pedal on a piano that softens the tone
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Verb | 1. | soft-pedal - play down or obscure; "His advisers soft-pedaled the president's blunder" background, play down, downplay - understate the importance or quality of; "he played down his royal ancestry" |
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