Sugar/sweeten the pill

usgb
verb

To make an unpleasant or difficult situation easier to accept or deal with.

To sugar the pill, they are offering a cash incentive if people volunteer for redundancy.
Visual representation of "sugar/sweeten the pill" - To make an unpleasant or difficult situation easier to accept or deal with

Often appears as...

  • sugar the redundancy pill
  • sugar the retirement pill

Usage tips

Neutral

Idiomatic

Definition 1 of 2
Visual representation of "sugar/sweeten the pill"
LampPro Tip 1/3

Figurative Use

Not about actual sugar or pills. Used metaphorically to describe making a tough situation nicer.

Illustration for Figurative Use
To ease the news of the longer working hours, the boss decided to sugar the pill with a bonus.
LampPro Tip 2/3

Softening Impact

Used when trying to lessen the negative impact or feeling associated with receiving bad news.

Illustration for Softening Impact
The teacher sugared the pill of extra homework with a promise of a class party after completion.
LampPro Tip 3/3

Common Contexts

Often used in professional or personal situations where changes are unavoidable but the effects can be eased.

Illustration for Common Contexts
To sugar the pill of moving to a new city, his parents bought him a new bicycle.
Visual representation of the word "Sugar/sweeten the pill"

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