Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

de-emphasize

/diːˈɛmfəsaɪz/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.68 in modern English

Syllables
de-em-pha-size
IPA
/diːˈɛmfəsaɪz/
28
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
4
Syllables
9
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To remove or reduce the emphasis from something; to make something less important; to play down.

Transitive verb

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *de Proto-Indo-European *-h₁ Proto-Indo-European *déh₁ Proto-Italic *dē Latin dē Latin dē-der. English de- English emphasize English de-emphasize From de- + emphasize.

Regional Pronunciation

  • British English: /diːˈɛmfəsaɪz/

Usage

Inflected Forms

de-emphasizes (present, singular) de-emphasizing (participle, present) de-emphasized (participle, past) de-emphasized (past) de-emphasise (alternative) deemphasise (alternative) deemphasize (alternative) deëmphasize (alternative)

Synonyms

downplay make light of understate bagatellize banalize belittle cut down de-emphasize denigrate degrade deprecate derogate

Questions

How do you pronounce de-emphasize?
The recorded pronunciation is /diːˈɛmfəsaɪz/.
What does de-emphasize mean?
To remove or reduce the emphasis from something; to make something less important; to play down.
Where does de-emphasize come from?
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *de Proto-Indo-European *-h₁ Proto-Indo-European *déh₁ Proto-Italic *dē Latin dē Latin dē-der. English de- English emphasize English de-emphasize From de- + emphasize.

How to pronounce de-emphasize

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “de-emphasize”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/diːˈɛmfəsaɪz/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “de-emphasize”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “de-emphasize” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.