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overfished

American  
[oh-ver-fisht] / ˌoʊ vərˈfɪʃt /

adjective

  1. (of a body of water) having its supply of fish or other marine life severely depleted by fishing.

  2. (of a type of fish or other marine animal) severely reduced in numbers by fishing.


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.

The toothless bottom-feeder, which looks like a prehistoric catfish and can weigh over 200 pounds, has been overfished globally.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 20, 2026

Using statistical models, the team estimated current fish populations and projected how much they could increase if overfished reefs were managed more effectively.

From Science Daily • Jan. 4, 2026

For instance, one major US seafood trade association has called for a tariff exemption, highlighting that the US seafood market is dominated by imports and American waters are already overfished.

From BBC • Sep. 4, 2025

As it turns out, there is hope for shark cinema yet, even in this overfished landscape, and it’s coming from an unexpected place: Cannes.

From Salon • Jun. 8, 2025

A New Fly.—" ... an altogether original fly, unheard of, startling, will often do great execution in an overfished pool."—Henry van Dyke.

From The Determined Angler and the Brook Trout an anthological volume of trout fishing, trout histories, trout lore, trout resorts, and trout tackle by Bradford, Charles Barker