MINIMISE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does minimise mean? 

• MINIMISE (verb)
  The verb MINIMISE has 2 senses:

1. represent as less significant or important

2. make small or insignificant

  Familiarity information: MINIMISE used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MINIMISE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they minimise    ... he / she / it minimises   
Past simple: minimised   
Past participle: minimised   
-ing form: minimising   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Represent as less significant or important

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

downplay; minimise; minimize; understate

Hypernyms (to "minimise" is one way to...):

inform (impart knowledge of some fact, state of affairs, or event to)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "minimise"):

trivialise; trivialize (make trivial or insignificant)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

minimisation (the act of reducing something to the least possible amount or degree or position)

minimum (the smallest possible quantity)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Make small or insignificant

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

minimise; minimize

Context example:

Let's minimize the risk

Hypernyms (to "minimise" is one way to...):

decrease; lessen; minify (make smaller)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "minimise"):

hedge (minimize loss or risk)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Antonym:

maximise (make as big or large as possible)

Derivation:

minimisation (the act of reducing something to the least possible amount or degree or position)

minimum (the smallest possible quantity)

 Context examples 

Although there are currently no treatments that reverse atherosclerosis, lifestyle interventions such as improved diet and increased exercise can reduce the risk of the condition worsening; early detection can minimise this risk.

(Observation of blood vessel cells changing function could lead to early detection of blocked arteries, University of Cambridge)

Inspector Baynes, who, with his usual astuteness, had minimised the incident before me, had really recognised its importance and had left a trap into which the creature walked.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Potential risks to the brain can be minimised by using headphones or the loud speaker while calling, in particular when network quality is low and the mobile phone is functioning at maximum power.

(Cell Phone Radiation Harmful for Memory, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Dr McNeilly and her colleagues now intend to find out if boosting the body's antioxidative system can minimise cognitive decline associated with low blood sugar in humans, by using drugs based on the chemical structure of SFN.

(Antioxidants May Prevent Cognitive Impairment in Diabetes, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)