Meaning & use
underestimate
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To think that someone or something is weaker, smaller, easier or less important than they really are.
Grammar: Takes an object: don't underestimate her.
Patterns
- underestimate someone
- underestimate how hard something is
Never underestimate how stubborn a toddler can be.
The coach underestimated the other team.
We underestimated the cost of the repairs.
nouncountable
A guess or calculation that is too low.
Grammar: Noun is pronounced with a final schwa-like sound: an underestimate.
Patterns
- an underestimate of something
- a gross underestimate
The first budget was a serious underestimate.
Calling the storm a drizzle is a huge underestimate.
The official figure is probably an underestimate.
Word forms
| third person singular | underestimates |
|---|---|
| past tense | underestimated |
| past participle | underestimated |
| -ing form | underestimating |
| plural noun | underestimates |
Common combinations
- seriously underestimate
- They seriously underestimated the risk.
- never underestimate
- Never underestimate the value of sleep.
- grossly underestimate
- The report grossly underestimated the damage.
- underestimate the size of
- We underestimated the size of the crowd.
- easy to underestimate
- His quiet manner makes him easy to underestimate.
Synonyms and how they differ
- undervalue
- Undervalue means to give something less worth than it deserves, while underestimate is about judging size or ability too low.
- underrate
- Underrate is almost the same but is most often used about talent or quality.
- downplay
- Downplay is deliberate, as in making something sound less important, whereas underestimate is usually an honest mistake.
- belittle
- Belittle is intentional and insulting, unlike underestimate which is just a misjudgment.
Opposites
Word family
- estimate verb
- to judge roughly
- underestimation noun
- the act of judging too low
- overestimate verb
- to judge too high
- estimation noun
- a judgment or opinion
Commonly confused: underestimate or understate?
underestimate vs understate
Understate means to describe something as less than it is, usually in speech, while underestimate is a wrong judgment in the mind.
Practice
The builders ___ how long the roof would take, so the work ran weeks late.
Choose one answer.
They judged the time as too short, which is underestimating. Overestimated would make the job finish early, overlooked and undertook do not fit the meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “underestimate”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.