smooth over
phrasal verb
smoothed over; smoothing over; smooths over also smoothes over
: to make (a disagreement, problem, difficulty, etc.) seem less serious than it really is
Don't worry about missing the application deadline—we'll smooth that over with the office.
She smoothed over the objections to his candidacy.
Examples of smooth over in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Use a gentle exfoliant to smooth over any dry patches (Cheng likes Glossier’s new Cleanser Concentrate) and a good moisturizer.
—
Bella Cacciatore, Glamour, 14 Mar. 2025
Meanwhile, this is a good day to discuss how to smooth over past difficulties.
—Georgia Nicols, The Denver Post, 11 Mar. 2025
But any unpalatable class issues at the center of the movie are smoothed over by the outrageous star power of Culkin, who is so charismatic as Kevin that the performance has followed him ever since.
—Erin Somers, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
The voice memo, lasting more than six minutes, paints a picture of an empathetic director trying to smooth over any hurt feelings Lively felt regarding his response to her suggested rewrites of a key opening scene by apologizing profusely.
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smooth over
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Bella Cacciatore, Glamour, 14 Mar. 2025
Meanwhile, this is a good day to discuss how to smooth over past difficulties.
—Georgia Nicols, The Denver Post, 11 Mar. 2025
But any unpalatable class issues at the center of the movie are smoothed over by the outrageous star power of Culkin, who is so charismatic as Kevin that the performance has followed him ever since.
—Erin Somers, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
The voice memo, lasting more than six minutes, paints a picture of an empathetic director trying to smooth over any hurt feelings Lively felt regarding his response to her suggested rewrites of a key opening scene by apologizing profusely.
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smooth over
Cite this Entry
“Smooth over.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/smooth%20over. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
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