as in ignoring
to dismiss as of little importance
brushed off their complaints as the whining of people who were never satisfied
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brushing (aside or off)
Verb
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Alyssa Farah Griffin attempted to cut in, with Navarro ignoring her in the moment.—
Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Jan. 2026
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James said the administration has not provided evidence of fraud or misuse of child care funding in New York, while ignoring the standard processes for withholding such funds.—
Verb
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This opening scene establishes a human, forgiving tone for a movie in which we are often encouraged to laugh with our heroes but never at them.—
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The waistband of the wide-leg trousers is fitted with elastic for a stretchy, forgiving fit, and they’re even designed with two deep side pockets that’ll hold your phone in a pinch.—
Verb
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Smaller protests took place in Portland, Oregon; Sacramento, California; Boston, Massachusetts; Denver, Colorado; Durham, North Carolina; and Tempe, Arizona, where protesters lined a bridge overlooking a highway.—
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Eventually, state workers were relocated and the building sat empty for more than two years overlooking I-84 until it was sold in 2020 for $1 million.—
Verb
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Alarmists will often focus on the negative while passing over potential positive outcomes.—
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The epicenter of the hurricane is passing over Cuba at the opposite end of the island to the Caribbean country's capital city of Havana, the BBC noted.—
Verb
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The dispute was resolved after Singh agreed to provide additional context, explaining that the files were collaborative documents shared among participants through the messaging app Signal.—
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Scanning them launches video tutorials explaining what each product does — without forcing customers to ask questions in a store.—
Verb
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Dee Winters undercut a pass and returned it 74 yards for a game-sealing score, papering over a shaky performance by the 49ers’ defense.—
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But the results were papering over some crumbly performances.—
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Cite this Entry
“Brushing (aside or off).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brushing%20%28aside%20or%20off%29. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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