play up
Make seem bigger
Play up means to emphasize or highlight something, often to make it seem more important or prominent than it might otherwise appear: The campaign played up his military service.
In British usage, play up also means to malfunction or cause trouble: My back's been playing up again, The children were playing up all afternoon.
Most notable part
- accentuateTo give emphasis
- underscoreLow horizontal text mark
- stressPressure, mental or vocal
- spotlightConcentrated illumination source
feature · foreground · showcase · focus on · draw attention to · bring out · zero in on
Represent as greater
- embellishAdd decorative elements
- inflateFill with gas
- overemphasizeStress something too much
- overplayEmphasize excessively
magnify · overdraw · hyperbolize · distort · stretch · embroider · overdo · dramatize
highlight
Most notable part
- accentuateTo give emphasis
- underscoreLow horizontal text mark
- stressPressure, mental or vocal
spotlight · feature · foreground · showcase · focus on · draw attention to · bring out · zero in on
overstate
Represent as greater
- embellishAdd decorative elements
- inflateFill with gas
- overemphasizeStress something too much
overplay · magnify · overdraw · hyperbolize · distort · stretch · embroider · overdo · dramatize · ham
glitch
Minor system fault
misfire · go haywire · fritz · conk out · sputter · fail · break down · go wrong
publicize
Make information widely available
pitch · boost · advertise · push · trumpet · sell · puff · ballyhoo · champion
- highlightemphasize, highlight, accentuate, underscore, underline
- lay it on thickexaggerate, overstate, embellish, overact, dramatize
- showing offboasting, bragged, show off, bragging, boasted
play upplay down
Diminish perceived significance
downplay · minimize · understate · de-emphasize · underplay
play upbehave
Act in acceptable ways
behave oneself · cooperate · toe the line · be good · settle down