overachiever

American  

[oh-ver-uh-chee-ver] / ˌoʊ vər əˈtʃi vər /

Also over-achiever

noun

1. a person who performs better or achieves more than people are generally expected to, often because of high ambition, pressure from family, etc..

   Ever the overachiever, he reached his sales goal for the year a whopping five months early.

2. a person who performs, especially academically, above the potential indicated by tests of their mental ability or aptitude.

   We found many overachievers with modest SAT scores who nevertheless achieved high GPAs across a variety of majors.

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Etymology

Origin of overachiever

First recorded in 1935–40; over- ( def. ) + achieve ( def. ) + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

Syndicated episodes of “Martha Stewart Living” upheld the attainability of elegance and the value of precise execution, appealing to my inner overachiever.

From Salon

A lot of us big readers are overachievers or rewards driven.

From The Wall Street Journal

If the bare minimum is enough for you to be seen and recognized for solid work, there might be no need to become an office overachiever.

From The Wall Street Journal

A team of overachievers filled with a roster of best friends combined chemistry, determination and toughness to overcome all odds.

From Los Angeles Times

Gilbert, who had the same likelihood of inheriting the disease but did not, said losing them turned her into an overachiever who always wanted to fight for the underdog.

From Salon