From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsoften/cushion the blowsoften/cushion the blowACCEPTto make something unpleasant easier for someone to accept A reduction in interest rates would soften the blow of tax increases. → blow
Examples from the Corpus
soften/cushion the blow• Help, or soften the blow.?• Even where price increases have taken place, retailers with good stocks may be able to cushion the blow for a while.• Try starting with a pat on the back to soften the blow of criticism.• Additionally, two presidential decrees on March 23 had been designed to cushion the blow of the price rises.• Factories had closed, and thousands were out of work, without unemployment insurance to soften the blow.• Some of the money will be used to soften the blow of budget cuts to education.• Letting some one resign is a way to soften the blow.• To cushion the blow, wages and pensions were increased. 