To talk down to is to speak to somebody as if they were stupid. Talk down to the audience.
It is about tone rather than content, since the same information can be given either way. Nobody notices when they talk down to people, and everybody notices when it is done to them.
1phrasetalk down toTo speak to somebody as if they were stupid.
“He would talk down to anybody who asked a question.”
talk down to is a phrase.
Practised in Phrasal Verbs