overstate
[oh-ver-steyt]
verb (used with object), o·ver·stat·ed, o·ver·stat·ing.
to state too strongly; exaggerate: to overstate one's position in a controversy.
RELATED CONTENT
Weasel Words And Other Ways We Avoid Telling The TruthMost of us know what the word lying means, but what happens when someone carefully skirts the truth instead of telling a bold-faced whopper? Politicians, in particular, are well known for making use of equivocal language as a way of hiding their true actions.
RELATED WORDS
overdo, magnify, emphasize, inflate, misrepresent, heighten, amplify, overestimate, overemphasize, lie, boast, fabricate, boost, enlarge, embellish, hike, exalt, pad, expand, puff
Nearby words
- overspill,
- overspin,
- overspread,
- overstaff,
- overstand,
- overstatement,
- overstay,
- overstayer,
- oversteer,
- overstep
Origin of overstate
SYNONYMS FOR overstate
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for overstate
overstate
verb
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
overstate
1630s, "assume too much grandeur;" see over- + state (n.1). Meaning "state too strongly" is attested from 1798, from state (v.). Related: Overstated, overstating.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper