underdo

[ uhn-der-doo ]

verb (used with or without object)

, un·der·did, un·der·done, un·der·do·ing.

1. to do less or in a lesser fashion than is usual or requisite.

Word History and Origins

Origin of underdo¹

First recorded in 1605–15; under- + do ¹

Example Sentences

“We don’t want to underdo it and then he’s not ready to play in real games, but we obviously don’t want to overdo it,” Vogel said of the preseason.

From Seattle Times

“We don’t want to underdo it and then he’s not ready to play in real games. But obviously don’t want to overdo as well,” Vogel said.

From Los Angeles Times

“You can’t win. If you overdo it, you panic everybody. If you underdo it, they get complacent. You have to be careful.”

From New York Times

I hope I don’t overdo it or underdo it,’” Mirren says, speaking alongside McKellen at the Corinthia Hotel in London.

From Los Angeles Times

“Because no is the word we use to express our power, the normal tendency is to overdo our noes, so they come across as attacking — or to underdo our noes, so they come across as weak and hesitant,” Ury writes.

From Seattle Times