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overrate

[oh-ver-reyt]
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verb (used with object), o·ver·rat·ed, o·ver·rat·ing.
  1. to rate or appraise too highly; overestimate: I think you overrate their political influence.
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Origin of overrate

First recorded in 1580–90; over- + rate1

Synonyms

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overpraise, overesteem, magnify.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

magnifyexaggerateoverestimateovervalueoversellexceedoverpraiseoverprize

Examples from the Web for overrate

Historical Examples

  • If you fancy that I exaggerate this power, or overrate its extent, listen to one fact.

    Gerald Fitzgerald

    Charles James Lever

  • That I did not overrate the peril before me, events soon proved.

    Confessions Of Con Cregan

    Charles James Lever

  • It is impossible to overrate the significance of this event.

  • It is hard to overrate the consequences of the fall of New Orleans.

  • Yet it would be impossible to overrate the delicacy of that situation.

    On the Heels of De Wet

    The Intelligence Officer

British Dictionary definitions for overrate

overrate

verb
  1. (tr) to assess too highly
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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

Word Origin and History for overrate

v.

1610s, from over- + rate (v.). Related: Overrated; overrating.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper