understating

Verb

understate (third-person singular simple present understates, present participle understating, simple past and past participle understated)

1. (transitive) To state (something) with less completeness than needed; to minimise or downplay.
   • To call this decision a calculated bet understates the risk; it is a Hail Mary pass.

   Synonyms:

   downplay, trivialize, bagatellize, banalize, belittle, cut down, de-emphasize, denigrate, degrade, deprecate

   Antonyms:

   overstate, exaggerate, big up, cut it fat, hyperbolize, overcharge, overdo, overemphasize, play up, stretch

2. (transitive) To state (something) with an intentional lack of emphasis, in order to express irony.
   • She is the queen of understatement: she understated her critique masterfully.
3. To state a quantity that is too low.
   • The company had been understating its liabilities for years.

   Synonyms:

   underrate, misunderestimate, sell short, underapproximate, underestimate, underguess, underjudge, underreckon

   Antonyms:

   overstate, overapproximate, overestimate, overhold, overrate, overreckon, overthink