| Main Entry: | sour grapes |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | affected scorn |
Synonyms: |
bad-mouthing, derogation, disappointment, disparagement, ill-will, resentment |
| Main Entry: | belittle |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | detract |
Synonyms: |
bad-mouth, blister, criticize, cut down to size, cut to the quick, decry, deprecate, depreciate, deride, derogate, diminish, discount, discredit, disparage, dispraise, downgrade, downplay, dump on, knock*, lower, minimize, pan, pooh pooh, poor mouth, put down, rip*, roast, run down, scoff at, scorch*, scorn, shoot down, shoot full of holes, slam*, smear, sneer at, sour grapes, squash, squelch, take a swipe at, take down, take down a peg, tear down, underestimate, underrate, undervalue, write off |
Antonyms: |
build up, exaggerate, praise, value |
| Main Entry: | disparage |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | criticize; detract from |
Synonyms: |
abuse, belittle, chill*, cry down, decry, defame, degrade, deject, demoralize, denigrate, deprecate, depreciate, deride, derogate, dis, discourage, discredit, disdain, dishearten, dismiss, dispirit, dispraise, downcry, dump on, lower, malign, minimize, pan, put down, put hooks in, rap, ridicule, roast, run down, scorch, scorn, slam*, slander, smear, sour grapes, tear down, traduce, underestimate, underrate, undervalue, vilify, write off |
Antonyms: |
approve, commend, compliment, flatter, laud, praise, sanction |
| Main Entry: | rationale |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | logic for belief, action |
Synonyms: |
account, excuse, explanation, exposition, grounds, hypothesis, justification, motivation, motive, philosophy, principle, raison d'être, rationalization, reason, reasons, song and dance, sour grapes, story*, the big idea, the whole idea, theory, whatfor, why and wherefore, whyfor |
| Notes: | a rationale is given for a future course of action, whereas a rationalization is offered for a past action |
| Main Entry: | reason |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | explanation for an action |
Synonyms: |
account, apologia, apology, argument, case, cover, defense, excuse, exposition, ground, idea, justification, notion, proof, rationale, rationalization, song and dance, sour grapes, the whole idea, vindication, whatfor, wherefore, why and wherefore, why*, whyfor |
| Main Entry: | rationale |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
Related
Adjectives: |
Aristotelian, analytical, argumentative, attributable, attributed, automorphic, biconditional, cogent, cognitive, coherent, controversial, controvertible, cumulative, cut-and-dried, debatable, definitive, derivable from, dialectic, dianoetic, didactic, discursive, discursory, disputatious, due to, epistemic, esemplastic, eudemonistic, facultative, forensic, hebamic, implausible, irrelevant, logical, lucid, moot, noetic, owing to, paralogic, perspicacious, perspicuous, polemical, putative, rational, rationalistic, reasoning, referable, referrible, relevant, specious, synthetic, tenable, thought-out, unilateral, viable, watertight, well-founded, well-grounded, well-taken
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