overflow
Americanverb (used without object)
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overflows,
present (3rd person singular)
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overflowed,
past participle, past
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overflown,
past participle
-
overflowing
present participle
-
to flow or run over, as rivers or water.
After the thaw, the river overflows and causes great damage.
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to have the contents flowing over or spilling, as an overfull container.
Stop pouring or your glass is going to overflow.
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to pass from one place or part to another as if flowing from an overfull space.
The population overflowed into the adjoining territory.
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to be filled or supplied with in great measure.
a heart overflowing with gratitude; a region overflowing with orchards and vineyards.
verb (used with object)
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overflows,
present (3rd person singular)
-
overflowed,
past participle, past
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overflown,
past participle
-
overflowing
present participle
-
to flow over; flood; inundate.
The river overflowed several farms.
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to flow over or beyond (the brim, banks, borders, etc.).
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to cause to overflow.
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to flow over the edge or brim of (a receptacle, container, etc.).
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to fill to the point of running over.
noun
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overflows
plural
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an overflowing.
the annual overflow of the Nile.
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something that flows or runs over.
to carry off the overflow from a fountain.
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a portion crowded out of an overfilled place.
to house the overflow of the museum's collection in another building.
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an excess or superabundance.
an overflow of applicants for the job.
- Synonyms:
- glut, flood, plethora, surplus, overabundance
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an outlet or receptacle for excess liquid.
The tank is equipped with an overflow.
verb
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to flow or run over (a limit, brim, bank, etc)
-
to fill or be filled beyond capacity so as to spill or run over
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to be filled with happiness, tears, etc
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(tr) to spread or cover over; flood or inundate
noun
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overflowing matter, esp liquid
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any outlet that enables surplus liquid to be discharged or drained off, esp one just below the top of a tank or cistern
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the amount by which a limit, capacity, etc, is exceeded
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computing a condition that occurs when numeric operations produce results too large to store in the memory space assigned to it
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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overflowsimple
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overflowssimple
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have overflowedperfect
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have overflownperfect
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has overflowedperfect
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has overflownperfect
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am overflowingprogressive
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are overflowingprogressive
-
is overflowingprogressive
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have been overflowingperfect progressive
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has been overflowingperfect progressive
Past
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overflowedsimple
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had overflowedperfect
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had overflownperfect
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was overflowingprogressive
-
were overflowingprogressive
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had been overflowingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of overflow
before 900; Middle English overflowen, Old English oferflōwan. See over-, flow
Explanation
To overflow is to go beyond filling something with a liquid, so that it gushes over the edges. During heavy rainstorms, rivers sometimes overflow their banks and flood the surrounding land. Bathwater will overflow the tub if you don't turn the water off, and if you keep pouring coffee after your cup is full, it will also overflow. Literal overflowing involves liquid, but you can also use this verb to mean "fill a container" or "fill with feeling." So your arms can overflow with flowers, and your heart can overflow with happiness. The Old English root is oferfleow, "flood" or "inundate."
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:
Mr. Douglas does not write with bitterness about his father’s volte-face, but neither does he overflow with mercy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
We wore KN95 masks—a modern version of the plague doctor beaks—and hid in our houses, and saw our hospitals overflow, and couldn’t be with our loved ones when they died.
From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026
Yorkshire Water said it was investigating further projects in Ripon as part of a £1.5bn investment programme aimed at reducing storm overflow use.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation warned of low pressure across eastern, northeastern and central Thailand until Sunday, saying there was a risk of flash floods, forest runoff, mudslides, and river overflow.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
The corridors jam with weary war travelers, and the loos overflow with stink.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Because I’m a stranger who people regularly turn to for financial help, my inbox typically overflows with general questions like the one above.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
Any cost overflows would be paid for by DWP customers.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
It doesn’t take much for my inbox to fill up, but when the topic is hotel pet peeves it overflows.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
Retrofitting the warehouse for immigration detention would create construction sediment that would run into nearby waterways, Maryland’s lawsuit argued, and housing hundreds of people there would strain the water supply and create sewage overflows.
From Slate ● Apr. 27, 2026
Looking down at him on the floor, how he overflows the rug, I think about that story where a giant falls asleep and is tied up by little people.
From "Freak The Mighty" by Rodman Philbrick
Although recovery efforts were under way in parts of the city, some outlying areas remained at risk as a nearby river overflowed, forcing another 500 people to evacuate on Thursday morning.
From Barron's ● Jan. 8, 2026
My father’s memorial service overflowed with friends, former patients and neighbors, each one with a story about how he’d helped them, laughed with them or simply made them feel less alone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026
Water gathered in low-lying valleys and river channels, overflowed crater rims, and rushed through canyons.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 31, 2025
The boy’s wide eyes stared in excitement at his hands, which quickly overflowed with presents, about eight just for him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 25, 2025
Flowered curtains hung over the windows, obscuring the outside light, while wooden furniture overflowed the cramped space, the biggest piece of which was a four-poster bed covered with linens that matched the curtains.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
The victims died on Sunday and Monday in Minas Gerais state, where rivers have overflown, leaving towns partially submerged.
From BBC ● Jan. 12, 2022
Its military this month deployed tanks to the Tajik border with Afghanistan and has overflown the region with ground-attack jets, ostensibly on training exercises.
From New York Times ● Jul. 29, 2021
"That island was overflown by a plane catapulted from the USS Colorado a few days after she went missing. The pilot didn't see any recent activity."
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2019
According to the Palestinian Ma’an news agency, several Israeli bulldozers entered the southern Gaza Strip early on Thursday overflown by drones, which would fit with the timeframe described by the Israeli military.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 18, 2016
Four days after launching Sputnik into orbit, Radio Moscow announced the addition of one more city to its timetable of destinations that would be overflown by their satellite: Little Rock, Arkansas.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
An overflowing pool caused a hillside to partially collapse in the Hollywood Hills Friday, prompting evacuations, according to authorities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
Thanks to the boom in online fitness and beauty culture, our feeds are constantly overflowing with good-looking people who are just too boring to be hot.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
"If someone's not helping you remove those pots and pans, your water's overflowing by the end of the day," she says, "and you're at tipping point."
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
With mortuaries overflowing in Nepal, authorities have had to bury hundreds of unidentified bodies after DNA sampling.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
Over her shoulder, he saw the table overflowing with flowers and balloons.
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
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.
