overdraft
Americannoun
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overdrafts
plural
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an act or instance of overdrawing a checking account.
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a check overdrawn on a checking account.
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the amount overdrawn.
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an excessive drawing on or drawing off of something.
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a draft made to pass over a fire, as in a furnace.
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a draft passing downward through a kiln.
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Metalworking. a tendency of a rolled piece to curve upward after passing through a stand, occurring when the lower roll is faster than the upper.
noun
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a draft or withdrawal of money in excess of the credit balance on a bank or building-society cheque account
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the amount of money drawn or withdrawn thus
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of overdraft
Vocabulary lists containing overdraft
Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Introductory
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - High School
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Middle School
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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.
See Examples For:
The list of expenses goes on: credit-card debts, overdraft fees, interest on loans, funeral costs, unpaid taxes, administration fees for the estate.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
These accounts are free, do not include an overdraft facility, and provide essential banking for those unable to open a mainstream account.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
That same month “was the first month I didn’t overdraft my credit card,” he said, with the majority of his income today coming from the restaurant.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
In the two years after his first Rabo loan, McClain fell into overdraft dozens of times, sometimes almost daily.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
Ashamed for not understanding why we were always paying late fees and overdraft charges.
From "Free Lunch" by Rex Ogle
Having secured this approval, Revolut will now be able to offer protected deposit accounts and roll out a range of new services, including loans and overdrafts, at scale.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026
One victim was left hospitalised with stress after their finances were "destroyed" when loans, credit agreements and overdrafts were taken out using their name.
From BBC ● Dec. 22, 2025
Banks would have fewer excess reserves, so they’d need overdrafts again.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2025
Another is guidance issued in 2022 instructing banks not to process debit-card transactions and deposits in an order that would generate unexpected overdrafts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2024
A. The Scotch banks all allow the same rate and charge the same rates for discounts and overdrafts, and these are fixed relatively to the Bank of England rate.
From Readings in Money and Banking Selected and Adapted by Chester Arthur Phillips
Definitions 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.
