v. 25B6; verb
the aim is to minimize costs : KEEP DOWN, keep at/to a minimum, reduce, decrease, cut down, lessen, curtail, diminish, prune; informal slash.
we should not minimize his contribution : BELITTLE, make light of, play down, underestimate, underrate, downplay, undervalue, understate; informal pooh-pooh; archaic hold cheap; rare misprize.
maximize, exaggerate.