overdress
Americanverb (used with or without object)
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to dress with too much display, finery, or formality.
He certainly overdressed for the occasion.
-
to put excessive clothing on.
She tends to overdress her children.
noun
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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overdresssimple
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overdressessimple
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have overdressedperfect
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has overdressedperfect
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am overdressingprogressive
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are overdressingprogressive
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is overdressingprogressive
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have been overdressingperfect progressive
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has been overdressingperfect progressive
Past
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overdressedsimple
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had overdressedperfect
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was overdressingprogressive
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were overdressingprogressive
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had been overdressingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of overdress
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:
"I was wearing formal clothing – that taught me not to overdress in hot weather."
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
“It’s just flagrantly obnoxious to overdress in a workplace situation, especially when you’re a junior member,” said Gunn, best known for being a clear-eyed mentor on the fashion-design competition show “Project Runway.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 7, 2026
“The sweetness means it can take an acid nicely,” notes the chef, who instructs his staff to slightly overdress Little Gems because he finds the “juiciness” of the leaves slightly dilutes the dressing.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 18, 2022
Still, it’s hard to resist the temptation to overdress.
From Slate ● Oct. 24, 2020
It is so easy to renew the overdress and under bodice as required and it is, moreover, invaluable to suit the weather changes from day to day.
From Mother's Remedies Over One Thousand Tried and Tested Remedies from Mothers of the United States and Canada by Ritter, Thomas Jefferson
As the head of a luxury marketing agency who overdresses, smokes, mocks political correctness and oozes meanness, she is the extreme version of the “Parisienne,” disseminating style and scorn in equal measure.
From New York Times ● Nov. 9, 2020
Much fine stitchery was put into the fine white undergarments of that time, and the overdresses of both men and women became stiff with gold thread and jewels.
From Chats on Old Lace and Needlework by Lowes, Emily Leigh
The first group to enter is the pale-violet group, ladies-in-waiting, who wear pale-violet bodices and overdresses over white.
From Patriotic Plays and Pageants for Young People by Mackay, Constance D'Arcy
They are maids of the court, who wear rose-pink bodices and overdresses over white.
From Patriotic Plays and Pageants for Young People by Mackay, Constance D'Arcy
She still overdresses, and makes eyes, and she nudges those who sit next her at table, but she is good-natured, says whatever comes into her head, and has a strong sense of humor.
From Unleavened Bread by Grant, Robert
She made everyone else look overdone and overdressed, washing the Augean stables of Cannes clean.
From New York Times ● May 10, 2023
But many of us are still loyal to sweatpants, and perhaps less inclined to participate in the formal, overdressed dining rituals of our pre-pandemic lives.
From Salon ● Nov. 26, 2022
The threads, no pieces, of Chilean crab in the Cobb salad tasted watery, while the lettuce was overdressed until limp and the egg overcooked to dry-yolked and rubbery.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 10, 2019
However, his costume choices have attracted criticism in the past - including during a 2018 official visit to India, when his extensive range of traditional Indian outfits were mocked as "ridiculously overdressed".
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2019
She was wearing a purple t-shirt, which immediately made me feel overdressed.
From "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer
Doing the most: People made up for the past few years by overdressing in 2022.
From New York Times ● Dec. 31, 2022
We're overdressing her all the time, which I adore because it's not realistic at all, and we can do it and Darren loves it.
From Salon ● Dec. 21, 2022
One of the most common errors home cooks make with salad is overdressing it, says Andrew Taylor, a chef and owner of Eventide Oyster Co. in Portland, Maine.
From New York Times ● Nov. 10, 2021
Avoid the gruesome pitfalls of overdressing or underdressing.
From Slate ● Feb. 2, 2012
When she was well-dressed, she would be a beauty, thought Eleanor, but her present overdressing depreciated her genuine good looks.
From Polly and Her Friends Abroad by Roy, Lillian Elizabeth
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.
