Dictionary.com
definitions

overemphasize

[oh-ver-em-fuh-sahyz]
See more synonyms for overemphasize on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object), o·ver·em·pha·sized, o·ver·em·pha·siz·ing.
  1. to emphasize excessively.
verb (used without object), o·ver·em·pha·sized, o·ver·em·pha·siz·ing.
  1. to use excessive emphasis.
Also especially British, o·ver·em·pha·sise.

Origin of overemphasize

First recorded in 1900–05; over- + emphasize
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for overemphasize

enhance, inflate, aggravate, overstate, overestimate, overdo, exaggerate, overuse, overemphasize, maximize, magnify, emphasize, misrepresent, heighten, amplify, embellish, fabricate, distort, falsify, overdraw

Examples from the Web for overemphasize

Contemporary Examples of overemphasize

  • I cannot overemphasize how unimpressed I was by her over the course of two hours.

    The Daily Beast logo
    Justice Roberts Shines

    David Frum

    March 28, 2012

Historical Examples of overemphasize

  • I do not think it possible to overemphasize Gourmont's sense of beauty.

    Instigations

    Ezra Pound

  • The difficulty lies chiefly in the temptation to overemphasize.

    News Writing

    M. Lyle Spencer

  • We cannot overemphasize the importance of squeezing your trigger.

    The Plattsburg Manual

    O.O. Ellis and E.B. Garey

  • These examples are rather bald, and overemphasize the method in order to make it clear.

    Etiquette

    Emily Post

  • It is practically impossible to overemphasize the importance of the boy's vocational choice.

British Dictionary definitions for overemphasize

overemphasize

overemphasise

verb (tr)
  1. to give excessive emphasis or prominence to (something)
Derived Formsoveremphasis, noun
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