exaggerated

[ ig-zaj-uh-rey-tid ]

adjective

1. unduly or unrealistically magnified:

   to have an exaggerated opinion of oneself.

2. abnormally increased or enlarged.

Other Words From

• ex·agger·ated·ly adverb
• nonex·agger·ated adjective
• nonex·agger·ated·ly adverb
• self-ex·agger·ated adjective
• unex·agger·ated adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of exaggerated¹

First recorded in 1545–55; exaggerate + -ed ²

Example Sentences

We think our actions have an exaggerated influence on other people.

From Freakonomics

Continue hopping from one leg to the other like the exaggerated movement of a speed skater.

From Outside Online

For those who suffer from anxiety, the visual bias to attend to threat is exaggerated.

From Nautilus

It seems that rumors of Facebook Instant Articles’ death have been greatly exaggerated.

From Digiday

Britain’s first female prime minister, who died in 2013, is portrayed as clashing with Olivia Colman’s Elizabeth to an extent that some say is exaggerated.

From Fortune

Reports of the “end of men,”turns out, have been greatly exaggerated.

From The Daily Beast

Inevitably, some of this may have been exaggerated in social media.

From The Daily Beast

The threat of this virus to the general public may have been exaggerated.

From The Daily Beast

His many publications and his emails to me are long-winded, occasionally exaggerated, and sometimes hard to follow.

From The Daily Beast

One volunteer gave an exaggerated eye roll when I asked about it.

From The Daily Beast

We dismounted, and speedily found that MacRae hadn't exaggerated the evil qualities of that descent.

From Project Gutenberg

What a spectral and exaggerated shape all things take in her scared and over-excited gaze!

From Project Gutenberg

He spoke with an animation and earnestness that gave an exaggerated importance to every syllable he uttered.

From Project Gutenberg

It not only brought about the instant beginnings of the siege, but its proportions were grossly exaggerated in the public eye.

From Project Gutenberg

The news of Bruce's success, no doubt exaggerated and distorted, produced a great sensation in the northern parts of Scotland.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• abstract
• distorted
• excessive
• extravagant
• fabricated
• false
• farfetched
• hyperbolic
• inflated
• magnified
• melodramatic
• overblown
• overwrought
• preposterous
• pretentious
• stylized
• unrealistic