Dictionary.com

Popular Searches

 Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

overly

American  
[oh-ver-lee] / ˈoʊ vər li /

adverb

  1. excessively; too.

    a voyage not overly dangerous.
    Synonyms:
    inordinately, immoderately
overly British  
/ ˈəʊvəlɪ /

adverb

  1. too; excessively

"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

Etymology

Origin of overly

before 1050; Middle English; Old English oferlīce. See over, -ly

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.

But I was overly concerned that the post-tariff rebound had overshot, and it ended up going up a lot further.

From The Wall Street Journal

Palantir is too dependent on stingy government contracts and overly generous to its executives, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal

He added that while his team works hard, “I don’t think it’s cool to be overly ‘chest thumpy’ about working hours.”

From The Wall Street Journal

For people with compulsive disorders, addictions, or anxiety, these learned associations can become overly powerful.

From Science Daily

“The street has been overly conservative on Cathay’s earnings potential,” the analyst says.

From The Wall Street Journal

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.