- past participle of exaggerate.
- past tense form of exaggerate.
exaggerated
Americanadjective
-
unduly or unrealistically magnified.
to have an exaggerated opinion of oneself.
-
abnormally increased or enlarged.
adjective
-
unduly or excessively magnified; enlarged beyond truth or reasonableness
-
pathol abnormally enlarged
an exaggerated spleen
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of exaggerated
First recorded in 1545–55; exaggerate + -ed 2
Explanation
Exaggerated describes something that's been overstated, or described as more impressive than it really is. Your exaggerated details stretched the truth, but they sure made your story funny and memorable. Something that is exaggerated is described as better or bigger than it actually is, like your exaggerated description of the terrible day you had. Exaggerated can also describe something that is oversized, like the exaggerated collar on a funky sweater. The original meaning of exaggerated, in the early 1500s, was "piled up or accumulated." To spell exaggerate correctly, think of bragger.
Vocabulary lists containing exaggerated
TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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"Fine?" Vocabulary from the short story
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The Pigman
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Riedels and Mericle find numerous ways in which these extra costs have been miscaptured or exaggerated and conclude that “most of the 20 basis points contribution to core PCE from this category reflects mismeasurement.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
But negative sentiment about the UK market - which was often exaggerated - had contributed to companies leaving in the past, she said.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
Camille Grand, a former assistant secretary-general of NATO, said that some complaints were exaggerated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
It’s an idea that simply to get through the day we are playing a role of sorts, tuning our conversations to please others, or presenting exaggerated, false or tidied-up versions of ourselves on social media.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
“Oh, very noble,” he said sarcastically, his clapping too slow and exaggerated to be sincere.
From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
