Meaning & use
undervaluation
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountablefinance
The state of being given a price or worth that is lower than the real value, especially in finance.
Grammar: Uncountable as a general idea; countable when you point to a case: a clear undervaluation.
Patterns
- the undervaluation of something
- undervaluation of something against something
Analysts spotted a sharp undervaluation of the company's shares.
Critics say the currency's undervaluation gives exporters an unfair edge.
The undervaluation of the old house meant the buyer got a bargain.
noununcountablefigurative
A failure to give someone or something the respect, credit or importance it deserves.
Grammar: Often with of: the undervaluation of care work.
Patterns
- the undervaluation of someone
Teachers often point to the undervaluation of their profession.
There is a long history of undervaluation of women's work.
Word forms
| plural | undervaluations |
|---|
Common combinations
- currency undervaluation
- Currency undervaluation was a topic at the summit.
- significant undervaluation
- The report found significant undervaluation in the housing market.
- correct an undervaluation
- The market soon corrected the undervaluation.
- undervaluation of assets
- The undervaluation of assets cost shareholders money.
- persistent undervaluation
- Persistent undervaluation made the firm a takeover target.
Synonyms and how they differ
- underestimation
- This is about judging something as smaller or weaker than it is, not about its price or market worth.
- underpricing
- This is about the price someone sets, while undervaluation can be a judgement or a market result.
- devaluation
- This usually means an official cut in a currency's value, not a mistaken low estimate.
Opposites
Word family
- undervalue verb
- to give something too low a value
- undervalued adjective
- worth more than its price or reputation suggests
- value noun
- worth or importance
- overvaluation noun
- setting a value that is too high
Commonly confused: undervaluation or devaluation?
undervaluation vs devaluation
Devaluation is a deliberate lowering of a currency's official value, while undervaluation is a mismatch between a price and real worth.
Practice
Investors believed the shares were cheap because of a clear ___ by the market.
Choose one answer.
Undervaluation means worth is set lower than it should be, which makes the shares cheap. Overvaluation is the opposite, and devaluation usually refers to currencies.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “undervaluation”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.