(v. t.) To state in too strong terms; to exaggerate.
Example Sentences:
(1) While it is important not to overstate the case from the relatively small number of people consulted, they do represent a diverse range of adult social care service users from different areas in England .
(2) Last week we saw that the government had overstated the failings of the NHS by using dodgy figures (to be precise, they used misleading static figures instead of time trends).
(3) Although its highly questionable tax policies have made it a justifiable focus for criticism, it is hard to overstate its impact on coffee drinking in the UK.
(4) However, some doctors believe that the benefits of statins have been overstated, particularly for the lowest-risk group.
(5) They must behave as if Project Fear was overstated.
(6) It’s a seismic moment for the industry and particularly the big European manufacturers who have done a lot of work on diesel: technologically, they have they made the wrong bet.” Some analysts believe fears of brand damage in Europe are overstated but Bailey says: “In the US it’s very different: VW have killed their diesel market and it has left them in a very difficult position.” For British manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover, the timing of VW’s woes was ominous, as it unveiled two new diesels in America.
(7) Sure, Campbell at times had spoken to Rebekah Brooks every day, and had attended both of her weddings – but to call it a friendship "overstates it".
(8) In what is a credit to his integrity (although not his humanity), Walker held firm to his extremist position: “I believe that that is an unborn child that’s in need of protection out there, and I’ve said many a time that that unborn child can be protected, and there are many other alternatives that can also protect the life of that mother.” It’s is almost impossible to overstate how radical and indefensible Walker’s position is.
(9) Few would have expected the story at the end of the week to be that David Cameron had overstated his income for tax purposes.
(10) We shouldn’t overstate the ability of memes or hashtags to change the world.
(11) The uncertainty in track forecast right now cannot be overstated,” said The Capital Weather Gang , the forecasting site owned by the Washington Post.
(12) But even after a week's use, he wasn't in love: I don't like holding this phone, and I can't overstate how much that informs the experience of using it.
(13) "I think the figures are somewhat overstated in this country," he says tersely, "as it's generally the same three scientists making their voices heard.
(14) The FSA also said identity protection was mis-sold because CPP overstated the risks and consequences of identity theft during sales of the product.
(15) Nor can the court overstate the harm to African American citizens and to the integrity of the justice system that results from racially discriminatory jury selection practices," Weeks said.
(16) The broad, attractive claims made in support of physician dispensing by physicians clearly overstate the benefits both to patients and to physicians.
(17) While arguing that the risks of high technology are overstated and the dangers of low technology developments often are overlooked, Gaylin warns against approaches to controlling behavior that reduce heterogeneity and freedom.
(18) DLIF overstated determination of serum digoxin concentration, which in the case of exceptional narrow digoxin therapeutic spectrum as well as its concentration-dependent toxicity became a significant clinical problem.
(19) Specifically, profiles of patients identified as overreporters should be interpreted with caution so as to not overstate their level of pathology.
(20) Leahy, joined by ranking Republican Chuck Grassley of Iowa, criticised director of national intelligence James Clapper for making untruthful statements to Congress in March about the bulk phone records collection on Americans, and NSA director Keith Alexander for overstating the usefulness of that collection for stopping terrorist attacks.
Understate
Definition:
(v. t.) To state or represent less strongly than may be done truthfully.
Example Sentences:
(1) The former soldiers we spoke to, and their families, fear a report that will understate combat-related PTSD as a contributory factor.
(2) They are compared with reported incidence of lesions from the Onchocerciasis Control Programme: they are in good agreement for those aged under 30 years, but they understate the observed decline in older subjects.
(3) Sue: Troughton's taste in hats make that fez look positively understated.
(4) A small number of contactless transactions could be made before the card is blocked However, the figure could understate the true level of losses as many customers are unaware that they can still be defrauded after reporting a card as stolen or lost.
(5) He may be quiet and he may be understated, but he is ruthlessly competitive with a relentless drive towards one aim: to succeed.
(6) She talks about her "feminine and understated" negotiating style, and how helpful it is, though frankly, her immediate stance on Greece – belt up and get on with it – won't strike protesting Greeks as at all understated, I shouldn't think.
(7) "The full impact of the coalition government's planned fiscal tightening has been understated," said John Philpott, chief economist at the CIPD.
(8) That enthusiasm for elegant, understated clothing and bags has paid off, as Prada has bucked the downturn to open stores around the world – 63 in the year to last September – and rack up €409m (£352m) in profit in the first three quarters of 2012, a huge rise of 50% year on year, boosted by an increase of 41% in Asian sales.
(9) Her calm, understated style is perfect for Aberdovey, and would not be out of place in coolest Cornwall or even California, where she and husband Gareth used to live.
(10) "Had General Dostum gone to another ticket, my winning would have become theoretical," Ghani said in the conservatory of his understated home in west Kabul, shortly before the Helmand gathering.
(11) This had the effect of incorrectly understating both our receipts and payments as reported on the original return which have now been corrected in the amended return.” “We have implemented measures to ensure that these errors are not repeated in future annual returns.” The donation amendments were revealed by DisclosureBot , a Twitter bot that tweets whenever political parties file donation amendments , or when politicians update their register of interests.
(12) One wonders what his defense minister Ehud Barak and the former Mossad chief Meir Dagan, and other Israeli leaders who disagree with him in his analysis of the urgency of the Iranian nuclear threat, think of his public commitment to such a fraught – that understates it – such a perilous and perhaps impracticable military operation.
(13) But the more understated David Tanner, GB Rowing performance director, and sailing's ebullient Stephen Park have been equally influential in their own sports.
(14) VW could face billions in car tax repayments over latest CO2 scandal Read more VW admitted in September to cheating tests for emissions of nitrogen oxides and the scandal widened with the company’s revelation last week that it had also understated carbon dioxide emissions.
(15) My friends and the teachers were just the same, and in my science class we managed to watch the game again.” To say Ibe is close to his parents would be understating the case.
(16) Statistical association of alleles may cause estimates based on the assumption of statistical independence to understate the true matching probabilities by many orders of magnitude.
(17) To the extent that the implant superimposition is to be considered the true and correct one, the anatomical best fit superimposition appears to understate the true downward remodeling of the palate by an average of about 0.3 and 0.4 mm per year, although this value differs at different ages and timepoints.
(18) Bottle Rocket , a heist movie released in 1996, was understated, amusing, very original and a commercial flop.
(19) If so, it would seem likely to overcome one of the most understated but nonetheless greatest difficulties associated with molecular modelling and computer-aided drug design--reproducibility.
(20) Happy Valley review: understated, refreshing – and with bodies already piling up Read more This should come as no surprise given that Sally Wainwright , the show’s creator, has been responsible for what feels like every British hit save for Downton Abbey in the past few years: Last Tango in Halifax , which also played well in the US; and the crime drama Scott and Bailey .