understate

[ uhn-der-steyt ]

verb (used with object)

, un·der·stat·ed, un·der·stat·ing.

1. to state or represent less strongly or strikingly than the facts would bear out; set forth in restrained, moderate, or weak terms:

   The casualty lists understate the extent of the disaster.

understate

/ ˌʌndəˈsteɪt /

verb

1. to state (something) in restrained terms, often to obtain an ironic effect
2. to state that (something, such as a number) is less than it is

Other Words From

• un·der·state·ment [uhn-der-, steyt, -m, uh, nt, uhn, -der-steyt-], noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of understate¹

First recorded in 1815–25; under- + state

Example Sentences

“I’m interested to see what we can glean from information about what polling organizations did to produce their estimates and whether and how this impacted their results and performance, which also might help us understand the tendency to understate Trump vote shares,” Wlezien said.

From Salon

Overall, Barker believes a number of possible factors could cause the 2024 polls to understate Democratic support, foremost among them the desire to overcorrect from understating Republican support in the last two cycles.

From Salon

This is not to say that there are not also factors which could understate the level of support for Trump for a third consecutive cycle.

From Salon

"They likely understate the actual threats. Nevertheless, time and time again, warnings of possible or even likely future events and risks typically bring only limited responses and even insurance is not taken out. The nearer term local and regional issues are always of bigger concern. Only when one adopts a longer term, 10 to 20 year perspective, does one's values and perceptions change."

From Salon

The first is that these figures come from government surveys and they understate the number of people receiving pension credit by about 300,000 compared with the DWP's separate publication showing the number of actual claimants.

From BBC

Related Words

• downplay
• lessen
• minimize
• underrate
• undervalue