de-escalation

de-escalation — verb

1. to take action to lower the seriousness, emotional heat, or danger level of a co

1.動詞及物 / 不及物B2
釋義

to take action to lower the seriousness, emotional heat, or danger level of a conflict or threatening situation — for example, a teacher calming a classroom fight, or diplomats preventing a dispute from turning violent.

例句

The police negotiator spent two hours trying to de-escalate the tense standoff at the bank.

crisis context: police negotiator + standoff

Kenji took a step back and lowered his voice to de-escalate the argument with his neighbour.

de-escalate + argument (heated interpersonal conflict)

同義詞
  • defuse

    more specific, often suggests removing immediate danger (like defusing a bomb)

  • calm down

    more informal; focuses on emotions rather than the overall situation

  • mitigate

    more formal; broader — can refer to any kind of harm reduction, not just conflict

反義詞
  • escalate

    direct opposite — to increase intensity or severity

  • inflame

    to make a conflict angrier or more hostile

文法句型

de-escalate + object (a conflict / tensions / a situation)

de-escalate (no object)

用法筆記

Often used in contexts of conflict resolution, police work, diplomacy, and crisis management. The transitive pattern (de-escalate + direct object) is more common than intransitive use.

常見錯誤

❌The manager tried to de-escalate the meeting.' (too vague)
✅The manager tried to de-escalate the tense argument during the meeting.
💡use a concrete conflict rather than the event itself.