Definitions for: Exaggerate


[v] to enlarge beyond bounds or the truth; "tended to romanticize and exaggerate this ``gracious Old South'' imagery"
[v] do something to an excessive degree; "He overdid it last night when he did 100 push-ups"



Webster (1913) Definition: Ex*ag"ger*ate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Exaggerated;
p. pr. & vb. n. Exaggerating . ] [L. exaggeratus, p. p. of
exaggerare to heap up; ex out + aggerare to heap up, fr.
agger heap, aggerere to bring to; ad to + gerere to bear. See
Jest. ]
1. To heap up; to accumulate. [Obs.] ``Earth exaggerated upon
them [oaks and firs].'' --Sir M. Hale.

2. To amplify; to magnify; to enlarge beyond bounds or the
truth; to delineate extravagantly; to overstate the truth
concerning.

A friend exaggerates a man's virtues. --Addison.

Synonyms: amplify, hyerbolise, hyperbolize, magnify, overdo, overdraw, overstate

Antonyms: downplay, minimise, minimize, understate

See Also: aggrandise, aggrandize, blow, blow up, bluster, boast, brag, do, dramatise, dramatize, embellish, embroider, gas, gasconade, lard, make, misinform, mislead, overemphasise, overemphasize, overleap, oversimplify, overstress, pad, shoot a line, swash, tout, vaunt

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