as in to dilute
to alter (something) for the worse with the addition of foreign or lower-grade substances
watered down the cocktails while jacking up their prices
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for water down
Verb
-
Han and Li’s student-teacher relationship in particular is diluted and lacks necessary grounding, and there’s little compelling friction between the two masters to make up for it.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
28 May 2025 -
Follow label directions to dilute the concentrate before spraying.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
28 May 2025
Verb
-
Anthony Volpe couldn't make the throw to third base, and the Dodgers suddenly had the bases loaded and nobody out.—
Noah Camras,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 May 2025
-
With the bases now loaded and no one out, Cole started to rear back.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
30 May 2025
Verb
-
Crème Brûlée Steve Granitz Crème brûlée is like butter blonde, but dirtied up a bit for a browned, warm tint.—
Audrey Noble,
Vogue,
2 May 2025
-
He’s come through with timely hits, dirtied his uniform on the bases and made an impact with his arm in the outfield.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
30 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
The end of Elon Musk’s time at the helm of the Department of Government Efficiency is the latest chapter in a long story: Republicans are better at cutting taxes than cutting spending.—
W. James Antle III,
The Washington Examiner,
3 June 2025
-
President Joe Biden promoted a suite of policies meant to cut carbon emissions by boosting EV sales.—
Camila Domonoske,
NPR,
3 June 2025
Verb
-
In recent weeks, the flaws in the technology have crossed over into absurd territory: For example, by generating a summer reading list of fake books and legal documents polluted with serious errors and fabrications.—
Ryan Faughnder,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2025
-
The Hazel Johnson ordinance grew out of a 2020 federal civil rights complaint filed by the Southeast Environmental Task Force and other groups challenging the city’s concentration of polluting industries in certain neighborhoods.—
Brian J. Rogal,
Chicago Tribune,
27 May 2025
Verb
-
As the film unfolds, Wilson finds out that Sterns, the movie's villain, has been the mastermind behind the entire plot and has been poisoning Ross with gamma rays via pills for years.—
Caroline Blair,
People.com,
28 May 2025
-
Intermediately, because a member of Ethan’s team, Claire (Emmanuelle Béart) has poisoned Donloe, which results in Donloe having some pretty intense gastrointestinal reactions.—
Mike Ryan,
IndieWire,
27 May 2025
Verb
-
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on May 22 that certain frozen, raw and half-shell oysters from South Korea could be infected with norovirus.—
Fernando Cervantes Jr,
USA Today,
24 May 2025
-
Measles is highly contagious and can spread from one person to nine out of 10 people close to them, according to the CDC, which notes a person infected with measles can spread it to others four days before through four days after the rash appears.—
Antonio Pequeño IV,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Water down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/water%20down. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share