brushing aside
Sweeping away concerns
Brushing aside means dismissing something as unimportant or unworthy of consideration.
The image is of sweeping away an obstacle with a casual hand gesture: She brushed aside their concerns and proceeded with the plan.
It suggests the dismissal comes easily, perhaps too easily—treating serious objections as minor inconveniences.
- ignoreRefuse to notice
- turn a blind eyeDeliberately ignore something obvious
- look the other wayWillfully ignore misconduct
- pay no mindTo deliberately ignore
- gloss overMinimize or conceal flaws
deflect · disregard · reject · sidestep · rebuff · give the cold shoulder · neglect · overlook · tune out · trivialize · abandon · marginalize · shrug off · downplay · write off · let slide · spurn · forsake
- downplayingminimizing, downplay, trivializing, belittling, soft-pedal
brushing asideembracing
Holding warmly, willingly accepting
accepting · welcoming · acknowledging · taking to heart · heeding
brushing asidepondering
Thinking deeply about something
mulling over · attending to · contemplating · scrutinizing · heeding
brushing asideprioritizing
Ordering by importance
emphasizing · highlighting · foregrounding · centering · elevating
brush, brushed, brushes, brushy, aside, side, sides, sided, siding