understate
/ʌndəˈsteɪt/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.30 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To state (something) with less completeness than needed; to minimise or downplay.
Transitive verb
verb
To state (something) with an intentional lack of emphasis, in order to express irony.
Transitive verb
Example Sentences
- "To call this decision a calculated bet understates the risk; it is a Hail Mary pass."
- "She is the queen of understatement: she understated her critique masterfully."
- "The company had been understating its liabilities for years."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁én Proto-Indo-European *-tér Proto-Indo-European *h₁entér Proto-Indo-European *h₂én Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-? Proto-Indo-European *-dʰi ? Proto-Indo-European *(H)n̥dʰí Proto-Indo-European *-ér Proto-Indo-European *(H)n̥dʰér Proto-Germanic *under Proto-West Germanic *undar Old English under- Middle English under- English under- Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Indo-European *stéh₂-tu-s ~ *sth₂-téw-s Proto-Italic *status Latin statuslbor. Old French estatbor. Middle English stat English state English understate From under- + state.