Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

overboard

American  
[oh-ver-bawrd, -bohrd] / ˈoʊ vərˌbɔrd, -ˌboʊrd /

adverb

  1. over the side of a ship or boat, especially into or in the water.

    to fall overboard.

idioms

  1. go overboard, to go to extremes, especially in regard to approval or disapproval of a person or thing.

    I think the critics went overboard in panning that new show.
overboard British  
/ ˈəʊvəˌbɔːd /

adverb

  1. from on board a vessel into the water

  2. informal

    1. to be extremely enthusiastic

    2. to go to extremes

  3. to reject or abandon

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
overboard More Idioms  

  1. see go overboard.

Etymology

Origin of overboard

before 1000; Middle English over bord, Old English ofer bord. See over, board

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.

Police in the Bahamas are searching for an American woman who disappeared after reportedly falling overboard from a small boat while vacationing with her husband.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

Todd Meadows, a deckhand on one of the fishing vessels featured on the Emmy-winning reality series “Deadliest Catch,” died after he fell overboard into the Bering Sea.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026

When a British vessel threatened the ship that carried it, however, the captain threw the document overboard.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

During the qualifying trip, he broke several ribs falling over in rough seas and a key piece of equipment, his spinnaker pole, was lost overboard.

From BBC • Mar. 10, 2026

The children were disappointed when they discovered that the romantic phrase simply meant that you threw a lump of iron attached to a rope overboard.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith

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.