soft-pedal

[ sawft-ped-l, soft- ]
/ ˌsɔftˈpɛd l, ˌsɒft- /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR soft-pedal ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), soft-ped·aled, soft-ped·al·ing or (especially British) soft-ped·alled, soft-ped·al·ling.

to use the soft pedal.

verb (used with object), soft-ped·aled, soft-ped·al·ing or (especially British) soft-ped·alled, soft-ped·al·ling.

to soften the sound of by using the soft pedal.
Informal. to tone or play down; make less strong, as an idea or fact: The dean soft-pedaled the reports of cheating.

Origin of soft-pedal

First recorded in 1915–20; v. use of noun phrase soft pedal

Words nearby soft-pedal

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Definition for soft-pedal (2 of 2)

soft pedal

noun

Also called una corda pedal. a pedal, as on a piano, for reducing tonal volume.
Informal. something that restrains or dampens: to put a soft pedal on one's enthusiasm.

Origin of soft pedal

First recorded in 1920–25

Words related to soft-pedal

mitigate, subdue, palliate, shush, moderate, euphemize, blue-pencil, hush-hush

Example sentences from the Web for soft-pedal

British Dictionary definitions for soft-pedal

soft-pedal

verb -als, -alling or -alled or US -als, -aling or -aled (tr)

to mute the tone of (a piano) by depressing the soft pedal
informal to make (something, esp something unpleasant) less obvious by deliberately failing to emphasize or allude to it

noun soft pedal

a foot-operated lever on a piano, the left one of two, that either moves the whole action closer to the strings so that the hammers strike with less force or causes fewer of the strings to sound Compare sustaining pedal, piano 1

Idioms and Phrases with soft-pedal

soft pedal

Something that de-emphasizes, restrains, or plays down, as in The mayor put a soft pedal on this potentially explosive situation. This expression alludes to the una corda or soft pedal of the piano, which reduces the volume of the sound. It gave rise to the verb soft-pedal, meaning both “reduce the volume of” or “make less emphatic, downplay.” [Early 1900s]