Reduce another person's defensiveness, suspicion, or hostility through openness or warmth.
Reach for it when describing a response that makes a tense exchange safer and more receptive
Her willingness to admit the oversight helped disarm the frustrated audience.
| everyday | |
|---|---|
| warm |
|
| professional | |
| formal | |
| literary |
everyday
Fits when personal appeal wins someone over
Careful Charm can manipulate or delight without addressing suspicion honestly.
warm
put at ease
Fits when comfort in a social setting is the goal
Careful Ease is gentler than the shift from hostility implied by disarm.
warm
Fits when easing fear is more important than reducing hostility
Careful Reassurance may calm anxiety without changing a defensive stance.
professional
Fits when preventing escalation in a volatile situation is central
Careful Defuse treats the situation as dangerous and may sound too severe.
formal
conciliate
Fits when deliberate concessions restore goodwill
Careful Conciliation involves policy or action, not merely a winning manner.
literary
soften
Fits when a hard attitude becomes more sympathetic
Careful Soften can imply weakening someone rather than earning trust.
disarm suspicion
Publishing the raw figures helped disarm suspicion about the selection.
disarm with humor
He could disarm with humor without making light of the complaint.
disarm a critic
A careful demonstration may disarm a critic more effectively than argument.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Vealhurl, Southern England accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Updated
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