dumbed down

verb

past tense of dumb down
as in stripped (down)

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dumbed down
  1. simplified
  2. oversimplified
Verb
  • The site, with millions of users each year, was known for colorful charts that anyone could freely download and that simplified giant sets of data, such as temperature readings.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
  • The scorecard must be continually simplified and teams realigned around a common value stream.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of simplified
Verb
  • These categories complicate what can otherwise be oversimplified.
    — Matthew Alemu, The Conversation, 15 June 2026
  • Black voters make up roughly one-third of Georgia's electorate, and analysts have long viewed Black men as an important — though often oversimplified — voting bloc with priorities that include economic opportunity, public safety, education, health care, and quality-of-life issues.
    — Zachary Bynum, CBS News, 7 June 2026
Definition of oversimplified
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

dumbed
dumbed down
dumbfound
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dumbed down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dumbed%20down. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All