oversimplify
Americanverb (used with or without object)
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oversimplifies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
oversimplified,
past participle, past
-
oversimplifying
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
oversimplifysimple
-
oversimplifiessimple
-
have oversimplifiedperfect
-
has oversimplifiedperfect
-
am oversimplifyingprogressive
-
are oversimplifyingprogressive
-
is oversimplifyingprogressive
-
have been oversimplifyingperfect progressive
-
has been oversimplifyingperfect progressive
Past
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oversimplifiedsimple
-
had oversimplifiedperfect
-
was oversimplifyingprogressive
-
were oversimplifyingprogressive
-
had been oversimplifyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of oversimplify
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:
Industry officials said both descriptions vastly oversimplify things.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026
Together, these organisms determine how carbon is stored and recycled in the ocean, and treating them as a single group can oversimplify the ocean's response to climate pressures.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 8, 2026
Wald doesn’t think investors should oversimplify and assume that a strong dollar is always a headwind for big U.S. multinational companies—or a weak dollar supportive because it makes exports cheaper.
From Barron's ● Feb. 2, 2026
“Blanket messages may oversimplify complex evidence,” they wrote.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 23, 2025
I’m not trying to oversimplify or make the process seem oversubtle.
From "Native Son" by Richard Wright
While plausible, this view oversimplifies broader global trade instability that South America is also exposed to.
From BBC ● Apr. 25, 2025
Yet many scientists do not like the term because they feel it oversimplifies the science or because it cultivates a fatalistic outlook.
From Salon ● Mar. 18, 2024
"That number really oversimplifies what happens physiologically in the body when your body is exposed to that temperature, and it doesn't account for important variables like age or other vulnerability factors."
From Science Daily ● Nov. 30, 2023
But this convenient line of thinking not only oversimplifies the solution but understates the problem.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2022
Suffice to say that there is a core of truth to Jefferson’s account of the dinner-table bargain, though it vastly oversimplifies the history that was happening at that propitious moment.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Advisers today consider this guideline outdated and oversimplified because it relies on static assumptions that don’t reflect modern retirement realities such as longer life expectancies, unexpected healthcare expenses and market downturns.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
The researchers argue that predictions of an ongoing mass extinction may rely on oversimplified or outdated assumptions.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 27, 2025
That has often been oversimplified as meaning below 1.5C of warming is "safe" and above 1.5C "dangerous".
From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2025
Even for more general financial topics like retirement planning, the advice can be oversimplified or, in some cases, inaccurate.
From Salon ● Jan. 26, 2025
Historians, however, may find them too brief and oversimplified.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
“I think we are way oversimplifying health here and worry that some women will not get treated for major conditions.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 13, 2026
It is indicative of a mind that accepts complexity and seeks to account for it, instead of oversimplifying it into a false but attractive narrative.
From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2024
Given Weinstein’s power, Manning said, his defense team is oversimplifying the pressure each woman faced to acquiesce to him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2022
To defend against the bans, some gender-affirming providers were oversimplifying aspects of the treatments.
From New York Times ● Jun. 15, 2022
“And in many cases, that meant oversimplifying, omitting, and even outright falsehood. Now that you are here, there is no need for any of those things.”
From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
