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
Massage into wet skin or smooth over dry areas—shoulders, legs, collarbones.
—
Kate Donnelly, Forbes.com, 22 July 2025
His palm smoothed over the wisps of sandy hair clinging to his scalp, his bright blue eyes fixed on me.
—Literary Hub, 10 July 2025
Previous discourse from earlier this month will smooth over when Venus enters Cancer on July 10.
—Liz Simmons, StyleCaster, 24 June 2025
The South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority is giving Whiting’s Pierogi Fest an extra helping of sponsorship dollars this year, but the gesture likely won’t smooth over bad feelings between the SSCVA and the City of Hammond.
—Michelle L. Quinn, Chicago Tribune, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for smooth over
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Kate Donnelly, Forbes.com, 22 July 2025
His palm smoothed over the wisps of sandy hair clinging to his scalp, his bright blue eyes fixed on me.
—Literary Hub, 10 July 2025
Previous discourse from earlier this month will smooth over when Venus enters Cancer on July 10.
—Liz Simmons, StyleCaster, 24 June 2025
The South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority is giving Whiting’s Pierogi Fest an extra helping of sponsorship dollars this year, but the gesture likely won’t smooth over bad feelings between the SSCVA and the City of Hammond.
—Michelle L. Quinn, Chicago Tribune, 18 June 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 29 Jul. 2025.
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