Antonyms for lay it on thick
| Grammar : Verb |
| Spell : ley |
| Phonetic Transcription : leɪ |
- abridge
- be honest
- be modest
- belittle
- bully
- castigate
- compress
- condemn
- contract
- criticize
- decrease
- denounce
- deprecate
- depreciate
- discourage
- disenchant
- disgust
- dissuade
- force
- free
- ignore
- insult
- irritate
- lessen
- let go
- liberate
- lower
- minimize
- mismatch
- offend
- play down
- prevent
- reduce
- release
- repel
- repulse
- shrink
- simplify
- stop
- tell truth
- turn off
- understate
Definition of lay it on thick
Origin :- Old English þicce "not thin, dense," from Proto-Germanic *theku-, *thekwia- (cf. Old Saxon thikki, Old High German dicchi, German dick, Old Norse þykkr, Old Frisian thikke), from PIE *tegu- "thick" (cf. Gaelic tiugh).
- Secondary Old English sense of "close together" is preserved in thickset and proverbial phrase thick as thieves (1833). Meaning "stupid" is first recorded 1590s. Phrase thick and thin is in Chaucer (late 14c.); thick-skinned is attested from 1540s; in figurative sense from c.1600. To be in the thick of some action, etc., "to be at the most intense moment" is from 1680s, from a Middle English noun sense.
- As in inveigle : verb entice, manipulate
- As in overplay : verb be dramatic
- As in overstate : verb exaggerate
- As in butter up : verb charm someone with flattery
- As in cajole : verb attempt to coax; flatter
- As in sweet-talk : verb flatter
- As in affect : verb pretend, imitate
- As in exaggerate : verb overstate, embellish
- As in flatter : verb compliment excessively
Synonyms for lay it on thick
- accent
- accentuate
- act
- adopt
- adulate
- allure
- amplify
- apple polish
- argue into
- aspire to
- assume
- bait
- bamboozle
- banter
- beguile
- beslaver
- blandish
- blow out of proportion
- bluff
- boast
- boost
- bootlick
- brag
- brownnose
- build up
- butter
- butter up
- cajole
- caricature
- cater to
- charm
- coax
- color
- con
- contrive
- cook up
- corrupt
- counterfeit
- court
- crowd
- deceive
- decoy
- delude
- distort
- do a bit
- dramatize
- dupe
- egg on
- embellish
- embroider
- emphasize
- enlarge
- ensnare
- entice
- entrap
- exaggerate
- exalt
- expand
- fabricate
- fake
- falsify
- fawn
- feign
- flatter
- fudge
- get around
- get carried away
- get next to
- glorify
- go to extremes
- grovel
- ham it up
- hand a line
- heighten
- hike
- honey
- hook
- humor
- hyperbolize
- induce
- inflate
- influence
- intensify
- inveigle
- jolly
- labor at
- lay it on thick
- lead on
- lie
- loud talk
- lure
- magnify
- make out like
- make too much of
- make up to
- maneuver
- massage
- maximize
- mislead
- misquote
- misreport
- misrepresent
- mug
- oil
- overact
- overdo
- overdo it
- overdraw
- overemphasize
- overestimate
- overpraise
- overstate
- overstress
- overuse
- overwork
- pad
- persuade
- play up
- play up to
- playact
- point up
- praise
- pretty up
- puff
- push
- put on
- put up a front
- pyramid
- romance
- romanticize
- rope in
- rub the right way
- salve
- scam
- seduce
- sell
- sham
- show off
- simulate
- slaver
- snow
- soap
- soft-soap
- soften
- soften up
- spread it on
- stretch
- string along
- stroke
- suck up to
- sweet talk
- sweet-talk
- sweeten up
- take on
- tantalize
- tempt
- toady
- toll
- up
- urge
- wheedle
- work on
- work over
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019