soften

cushion/soften the blow

to make a difficult experience less unpleasant. Free street parking is to be abolished, but residents are being offered reduced price parking permits in an attempt to cushion the blow.

See also: blow, cushion

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soften the blow

1. to make something unpleasant easier to accept. Although tuition rates are going up, more scholarships will be available to soften the blow. Not only were they losing their jobs, but they could not count on any financial cushion to soften the blow.

2. to make a difficult experience less unpleasant. Special relief funds have been set aside to soften the blow to families that lost someone in the disaster.

See also: blow

soften someone/something up

to weaken someone or something. Constant bombing was designed to soften the enemy up and weaken him. The ads were just a way to soften up public opinion to accept a big price increase.