overdone

[oh-ver-duhn]

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verb

past participle of overdo.

adjective

cooked too long or too much: The roast was overdone. I dislike overdone steak.

excessive or strained; exaggerated: Don't you think his politeness is overdone?

overtaxed; exhausted: You're looking a bit overdone from that hike.

Origin of overdone

over- + done

overdo

[oh-ver-doo]

verb (used with object), o·ver·did, o·ver·done, o·ver·do·ing.

to do to excess; overindulge in: to overdo dieting.

to carry to excess or beyond the proper limit: He puts on so much charm that he overdoes it.

to overact (a part); exaggerate.

to overtax the strength of; fatigue; exhaust.

to cook too much or too long; overcook: Don't overdo the hamburgers.

verb (used without object), o·ver·did, o·ver·done, o·ver·do·ing.

to do too much; go to an extreme: Exercise is good but you mustn't overdo.

Origin of overdo

before 1000; Middle English overdon, Old English oferdōn. See over-, do¹

Related formso·ver·do·er, noun

Can be confusedoverdo overdue

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for overdone

burned, charred, exaggerated, elaborate, extravagant

Examples from the Web for overdone

Contemporary Examples of overdone

As with any exercise, it can be overdone to the point of diminishing returns and negative health consequences.
Dispelling the ‘Chronic Cardio’ Myth
Jason Fitzgerald
April 23, 2014
The “reaction to shutdowns is overdone,” wrote Michael Goldfarb.
What the Rest of the World Thinks of America’s Shutdown
October 3, 2013
At 143 minutes and with a $225 million price tag, Man of Steel feels overlong and overdone.
‘Man of Steel,’ New Superman Movie Starring Henry Cavill, Falls Flat
Marlow Stern
June 11, 2013
Cook has no chemistry with Wolf, who is overdone and annoying all on her own.
TV Preview: Snap Judgments of 2012-13’s New Shows
Jace Lacob, Maria Elena Fernandez
June 12, 2012
They were the only clients in the grand, overdone dining room, and as French intellectuals will do, they talked endlessly.
France's Favorite Philosopher Does Battle
Janine di Giovanni
January 21, 2011

Historical Examples of overdone

Linda realized that she had overdone her disinterestedness a trifle.
Her Father's Daughter
Gene Stratton-Porter
I tell you I was overdone with this terrific weather that seemed to have no end to it.
The Secret Sharer
Joseph Conrad
Its humor, too, is of a worthier sort, less likely to be forced and overdone.
Mark Twain, A Biography, 1835-1910, Complete
Albert Bigelow Paine
It was vulgar, it was overdone, it was absurd, but it was alive.
Appreciations and Criticisms of the Works of Charles Dickens
G. K. Chesterton
He sat down amid a dead silence, conscious he had overdone it.
Follow My leader
Talbot Baines Reed

British Dictionary definitions for overdone

overdo

verb -does, -doing, -did or -done (tr)

to take or carry too far; do to excess

to exaggerate, overelaborate, or overplay

to cook or bake too long

overdo it or overdo things to overtax one's strength, capacity, etc

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

Word Origin and History for overdone

adj.

Old English ofer-done "carried to excess;" see overdo. Of cooking from 1680s.

overdo

Old English oferdon "to do too much," from ofer (see over) + don (see do (v.)). Common Germanic (cf. Old High German ubartuan). Meaning "to overtax, exhaust" (especially in phrase to overdo it) is attested from 1817. Of food, "to cook too long," first recorded 1680s (in past participle adjective overdone).