overreact

[ oh-ver-ree-akt ]

/ ˌoʊ vər riˈækt /

verb (used without object)

to react or respond more strongly than is necessary or appropriate.

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Lincolnesque

without interest or significance; dull; insipid.

like or characteristic of Abraham Lincoln.

very high or tall; lofty.

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Words nearby overreact

overquick, overrake, overran, overrate, overreach, overreact, overrefine, overrefinement, overreliance, overrepresent, overrich

Origin of overreact

First recorded in 1960–65; over- + react

OTHER WORDS FROM overreact

o·ver·re·ac·tion, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for overreaction

The danger of a potential Republican overreach or overreaction was clearly on the minds of people in both parties Wednesday.
The Coming GOP Freakout Over Immigration|Patricia Murphy|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Overreaction is still a concern that worries public-health experts.
Are Mandatory Ebola Quarantines Legal?|Tim Mak|October 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Indeed, public condemnation and overreaction by state authorities may serve only to make the Ebola outbreak worse.
Quarantine Turns Ebola Heroes Into Pariahs|Russell Saunders|October 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
What seems more likely is that this was a gross overreaction from the start.
Elijah Cummings Fights Back|Michael Tomasky|June 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST

“I think there is overreaction now,” said Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable.
The Rogue Cop Who Could Get Away|Christine Pelisek|February 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for overreaction

overreact

/ (ˌəʊvərɪˈækt) /

verb

(intr) to react excessively to something

Derived forms of overreact

overreaction, 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

Medical definitions for overreaction

overreact

[ ō′vər-rē-ăkt′ ]

v.

To react with unnecessary or inappropriate force, emotional display, or violence.