overemphasize
Americanverb (used with object)
-
overemphasizes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
overemphasized,
past participle, past
-
overemphasizing
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
overemphasizes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
overemphasized,
past participle, past
-
overemphasizing
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
overemphasizesimple
-
overemphasizessimple
-
have overemphasizedperfect
-
has overemphasizedperfect
-
am overemphasizingprogressive
-
are overemphasizingprogressive
-
is overemphasizingprogressive
-
have been overemphasizingperfect progressive
-
has been overemphasizingperfect progressive
Past
-
overemphasizedsimple
-
had overemphasizedperfect
-
was overemphasizingprogressive
-
were overemphasizingprogressive
-
had been overemphasizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of overemphasize
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:
It’s hard to overemphasize the chaos an abrupt revocation of identity documents can inflict on a person’s life.
From Slate ● Feb. 27, 2026
“There has been a propensity to overemphasize short term, technical headlines and overlook the broader direction of travel within our industry,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2025
It is an intimate space, which meant that Armitage had to do without decor, and which may have led her to overemphasize theatrics.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2025
The researchers are taking care not to overemphasize the results of their findings, saying the changes, while significant, remain slight.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 20, 2024
However, origin stories may leave out key aspects of what actually happened and overemphasize others.
From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
"I think our field overemphasizes testing with metabolic rate. People are actually very insensitive to changes in their own metabolic rate, so we're developing exoskeletons to do something that people can't actually perceive."
From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2023
“With the threats around, it just overemphasizes the need for these events worldwide.”
From Washington Post ● Jun. 11, 2022
It overemphasizes formality and presentation, attributes that favor fine dining.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 16, 2019
It’s funny because of the large, exaggerated emotions spreading across his baby face, the way he overemphasizes the singer Kiely Williams’s lisp as he lip-syncs the word “promises.”
From New York Times ● Oct. 31, 2016
Ancient nations emphasized the social-national aspect of life overmuch, as for example the Spartans; the modern home overemphasizes the family aspect.
From The Nervous Housewife by Abraham Myerson
A risk of a potential cyclical slowdown is overemphasized in markets for the Japanese maker of chip-testing equipment, Ito says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026
She pointed to the presidential campaign of Harris, who could be the first woman and first person of Asian descent to serve as president, but who Lien said has strategically not overemphasized that fact.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2024
“I overemphasized being the best teammate I could be,” Jefferies said.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 13, 2024
It cannot be overemphasized: an ASI would be an extremely powerful technology.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2022
The importance of early recognition cannot be overemphasized.
From American Red Cross Text-Book on Home Hygiene and Care of the Sick by American Red Cross
Skeptics have cautioned that AI models are prone to mistakes and overemphasizing the technology could restrict the types of studies researchers pursue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
But overemphasizing the benefits of tree planting for carbon capture "can disincentive the protection of intact ecosystems and can lead to negative trade-offs between carbon, biodiversity, and ecosystem function," the authors write.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 3, 2023
He felt protective early on, when the media was overemphasizing where he is from with headlines like “... from South Central to stardom.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 22, 2023
And they say industry is overemphasizing the country’s reliance on it.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 19, 2023
She brings her toes and heels together in a single dramatic click, overemphasizing a military way of standing straight.
From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle
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.
