overrun
Americanverb (used with object)
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overruns,
present (3rd person singular)
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overran,
past
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overrun,
past participle
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overrunning
present participle
-
to rove over (a country, region, etc.); invade; ravage.
a time when looting hordes had overrun the province.
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to swarm over in great numbers, as animals, especially vermin; infest.
The house had been overrun by rats.
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to spread or grow rapidly over, as plants, especially vines, weeds, etc..
a garden overrun with weeds.
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to attack and defeat decisively, occupying and controlling the enemy's position; overwhelm.
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to spread rapidly throughout, as a new idea or spirit.
a rekindling of scholarship that had overrun Europe.
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to run or go beyond, as a certain limit.
The new jet overran the landing field.
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to exceed, as a budget or estimate.
to overrun one's allotted time.
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to run over; overflow.
During the flood season, the river overruns its banks for several miles.
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Printing.
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to print additional copies of (a book, pamphlet, etc.) in excess of the original or the usual order.
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to carry over (type or words) to another page.
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Nautical.
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to sail past (an intended stopping or turning point) by accident.
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(of a ship) to complete (a schedule of calls) more rapidly than anticipated.
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to outrun; overtake in running.
verb (used without object)
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overruns,
present (3rd person singular)
-
overran,
past
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overrun,
past participle
-
overrunning
present participle
-
to run over; overflow.
a stream that always overruns at springtime.
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to exceed the proper, desired, or normal quantity, limit, order, etc..
Do you want to overrun on this next issue?
noun
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overruns
plural
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an act or instance of overrunning.
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an amount in excess; surplus.
an overrun of 10,000 copies of a new book.
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the exceeding of estimated costs in design, development, and production, especially as estimated in a contract.
a staggering overrun on the new fighter plane.
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the amount exceeded.
an overrun of $500,000 for each fighter plane.
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a run on an item of manufacture beyond the quantity ordered by a customer and often offered at a discount.
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the amount by which the volume of a food, as butter or ice cream, is increased above the original volume by the inclusion of air, water, or another substance.
With only a 20 percent overrun, this is an excellent ice cream.
verb
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(tr) to attack or invade and defeat conclusively
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(tr) to swarm or spread over rapidly
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to run over (something); overflow
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to extend or run beyond a limit
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(intr) (of an engine) to run with a closed throttle at a speed dictated by that of the vehicle it drives, as on a decline
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(tr)
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to print (a book, journal, etc) in a greater quantity than ordered
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to print additional copies of (a publication)
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(tr) printing to transfer (set type and other matter) from one column, line, or page, to another
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archaic (tr) to run faster than
noun
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the act or an instance of overrunning
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the amount or extent of overrunning
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the number of copies of a publication in excess of the quantity ordered
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the cleared level area at the end of an airport runway
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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overrunsimple
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overrunssimple
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have overrunperfect
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has overrunperfect
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am overrunningprogressive
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are overrunningprogressive
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is overrunningprogressive
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have been overrunningperfect progressive
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has been overrunningperfect progressive
Past
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overransimple
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had overrunperfect
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was overrunningprogressive
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were overrunningprogressive
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had been overrunningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of overrun
First recorded before 900; Middle English overrennen, Old English oferyrnan; see over-, run
Explanation
Overrun means being populated in huge numbers or occupied in some way. Your beautiful beach town may be peaceful in the winter but overrun by tourists every summer. You can use this verb for a successful invading army: "The troops managed to overrun the entire peninsula, reclaiming the land they'd lost." It's also good for other kinds of invasions and infestations: "They closed my dog's daycare because it was overrun by fleas." The earliest meaning, still used today, was "continue beyond a specified time," like the class that overruns by fifteen minutes, making you very late to third-period math.
Vocabulary lists containing overrun
Background on Pearl Harbor
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Unit 5, Week 5
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over (above, too much)
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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:
Dr Amara Naseem says her clinics always overrun as it takes about 20 minutes to sensitively take a detailed history and carry out internal examinations.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Chilean ambassador Julio Cordano took over the role earlier this year after his predecessor resigned, and with the talks having overrun their initial schedule by more than a year.
From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026
She, much like the person behind the proverbial controller, is dropped into a world quickly becoming overrun by a viral plague with no idea what to do.
From Salon ● Sep. 23, 2026
Steffi Cao investigates how Williamsburg became overrun with tech bros.
From Slate ● Sep. 9, 2026
I didn’t know if she’d gotten lost or been overrun by monsters or what.
From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan
The project contractor now says Skylink won’t be running until January 2027 at the earliest, and cost overruns have driven up the price tag by 74%, to more than $3.3 billion.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026
Modern Britain is beset by planning delays, project overruns and ballooning infrastructure budgets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
The inspector general found that the Fed’s Board of Governors failed to take actions that would have mitigated significant cost overruns.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
Fed Inspector-General Michael Horowitz on Wednesday released his report into cost overruns on renovations of the Fed’s main Eccles building and an office complex across the street.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
The previous year, he had assumed command of construction of the Pentagon, then beleaguered by labor problems, material shortages, cost overruns, and miserable work conditions.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
The two pilots of an Amazon cargo plane that overran the runway while landing at Miami International Airport, striking a van and killing five people, have been released from hospital, officials said Tuesday.
From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026
We’ve issued a full ground stop at Miami International while first responders assess the scene after an Amazon cargo plane overran the runway.
From Salon ● Sep. 7, 2026
A Boeing 767-300 cargo plane was landing in Miami after departing from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Sunday when it overran the runway and crashed.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026
Both scored when Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernandez overran Drake Baldwin’s deep fly ball down the line, for a double.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
While Hitler’s forces overran Europe, Japan was on the attack in China and Southeast Asia.
From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin
Seve has let the detritus of life pile up around him — literally — with delivery packages and plastic-wrapped clothes overrunning his tiny Baltimore apartment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 25, 2026
Mr. Ellis takes as a case study the overrunning and removal of the Creek Indians in Georgia.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2025
Or are we too far gone to prevent rats from overrunning our cities?
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2025
With many missions overrunning their budgets, the agency has proposed dramatic changes.
From Science Magazine ● Mar. 11, 2024
But a few were uninhabited and gloomy-looking with dandelions overrunning the yard and limp gutters hanging loose from the weight of soggy old leaves and broken tree branches.
From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
