轻描淡写

輕描淡寫
qīngmiáo-dànxiě
idiom #23,135

Meanings

  1. 1 to gloss over
  2. 2 to play down
  3. 3 to understate
  4. 4 to treat as trivial
  5. 5 to mention only in passing

Examples

HSK 4
Bùnéng duì zhème yánzhòng de wèntí qīngmiáo-dànxiě.
We cannot play down such a serious problem.
HSK 4
Tā qīngmiáo-dànxiě de tídào le zhè jiàn shì.
She mentioned the matter only in passing.
HSK 5
Tā duì zìjǐ de cuòwù qīngmiáo-dànxiě, gēnběn méiyǒu dàoqiàn.
He glossed over his mistakes and didn't apologize at all.

Tips

memory
Literally 'light strokes and pale writing' - imagine a painter touching canvas so lightly that nothing is really shown. The image captures the act of barely addressing something, making it seem lighter than it is.

Stroke Order

轻 qīng
描 miáo
淡 dàn
写 xiě