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minimize

min·i·mize

minimize

 
 
pronunciation:
mI n maIz
features:
Word Combinations (verb), Word Parts
part of speech: verb
inflections: minimizes, minimizing, minimized
definition 1: to make as small as possible.
He wore a shirt to minimize the chance of getting a sunburn.
See a movie for this meaning
 
antonyms:
exaggerate
definition 2: to make seem less important or less valuable.
The senator minimized the need for better housing downtown.
antonyms:
exaggerate
Word Combinations  About this feature
adverb + (v.)minimize greatly, thereby, thus
(v.)minimize + adverb potentially
(v.)minimize + nounHelp amount, barrier, bias, burden, casualty, chance, complication, conflict, confusion, consequence, consumption, contact, cost, damage, danger, delay, difficulty, discomfort, disturbance, effect, emission, erosion, error, expense, exposure, fatigue, formation, fraud, friction, gain, harm, hazard, impact, importance, infection, influence, injury, intake, interaction, interference, involvement, likelihood, load, loss, maintenance, moisture, muscle, noise, obligation, occurrence, odor, overlap, pain, pesticide, pollution, pore, possibility, potential, probability, requirement, resistance, risk, significance, soil, strain, stress, suffering, sum, symptom, tension, threat, transaction, trauma, use, vulnerability, waste, wear, wrinkle  [See all][See only the most frequent]
derivations: minimization (n.), minimizer (n.)
Word Parts  About this feature
The word minimize contains the following part:
min Latin root that means small; make smaller
synonyms:
micro-
antonyms:
magn, magna, magni, maxi, mega, megal, megalo, -megaly, macro-