UNDERMINE and UNDERSCORE look like synonyms since they both begin with “under.” Don’ be deceived! In fact, the two words are antonyms. UNDERMINE means to weaken or diminish the effectiveness of a point. In contrast, UNDERSCORE means to emphasize or stress the effectiveness of a point.
The Weeknd’s hit song “Save Your Tears” contains lyrics that illustrate both UNDERMINE and UNDERSCORE. The Weeknd admits that he UNDERMINED the foundation of a previous relationship by saying “some things I should never say.” But, he wants his ex-back. Although he admits “you deserve someone better,” The Weeknd UNDERSCORES his continuing feelings by pleading, “Take me back cause I wanna stay.”
As you have probably guessed, SAT test writers have a strong preference for academic examples. For example, in a recent vocabulary in context question a surprising new measurement of the W boson’s mass could UNDERMINE the established standard model of particle physics.
UNDERSCORE has found a convenient place in the Academic Citation Cluster. A number of recent questions stress that frequent citations of a scholar’s publications UNDERSCORE the importance of his or her academic research.
UNDERMINE – to weaken or diminish the effectiveness of a point
UNDERSCORE – to emphasize or stress the effectiveness of a point