overstretch
Americanverb (used with object)
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overstretches,
present (3rd person singular)
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overstretched,
past participle, past
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overstretching
present participle
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to stretch excessively.
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to stretch or extend over.
noun
verb
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to make excessive demands or put excessive pressure on (oneself, finances, etc)
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to stretch (muscles or limbs) too much or too hard
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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overstretchsimple
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overstretchessimple
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have overstretchedperfect
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has overstretchedperfect
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am overstretchingprogressive
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are overstretchingprogressive
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is overstretchingprogressive
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have been overstretchingperfect progressive
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has been overstretchingperfect progressive
Past
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overstretchedsimple
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had overstretchedperfect
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was overstretchingprogressive
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were overstretchingprogressive
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had been overstretchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of overstretch
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:
Just don’t overstretch yourself financially for the sake of nostalgia.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
To win, it helps if you look like a winner - but overstretch yourself, and it could all go wrong.
From BBC ● May 11, 2024
Some critics have voiced concern that the agreement could overstretch U.S. shipyards and make it harder to maintain America’s own fleet.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 13, 2023
To ensure a reliable service, he said Delta would not try to overstretch its resources.
From Reuters ● Jan. 13, 2023
“That was a nasty crash you just had. What happened, anyway? Something go wrong with the bike? Arthur Weasley overstretch himself again, him and his Muggle contraptions?”
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Even when the film occasionally overstretches its CGI, it shows so much promise and creativity in its worldbuilding that it’s easy to forgive.
From The Verge ● Sep. 5, 2019
This overstretches especially the flexer tendons which run underneath the arch, produces bunions, and gives occasion for the development of corns.
From Psychotherapy by James J. (James Joseph) Walsh
Like culinary dishes, market crashes require specific ingredients: overstretched valuations, high debt levels and cash shortfalls, high volatility, rising capital costs, contagion vectors and poor shock absorbers.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
These sanitized accounts ignored the homemade dangers, such as the health problems fostered by an overstretched military — realities many children would face when a changed parent finally came home.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
Top military leaders told the president that a war would lead to casualties, concerns about the weapons stockpile and readiness problems for an overstretched force, The Wall Street Journal reported.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
After getting out of debt, Sarah says she and Lee have never overstretched themselves and have made regular overpayments on their mortgage.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
Hagrid, who was invited to the wedding the following day, but was far too bulky to sleep in the overstretched Burrow, left to set up a tent for himself in a neighboring field.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
For his part, Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday cast China as a champion of AI openness and said, “We should oppose overstretching the concept of national security in the field of AI.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
This gearing mechanism not only contributes to the overall elongation of the muscle but reduces the elongation of individual fascicles at any given time, preventing them from overstretching and getting injured.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 6, 2023
The committee “is concerned that the United States risks overstretching its capabilities and resources, in addition to the challenges faced by the defense industrial base in replenishing stocks of munitions and equipment,” the report said.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 5, 2023
Uefa, as the regulator, feels it is its responsibility to ensure the game is run in a manner where clubs are not at risk of overstretching themselves.
From BBC ● Jan. 24, 2023
“Nice job, I hope? Pleasant? Easy? Sort of thing you’d expect an unqualified wizard kid to be able to do without overstretching themselves?”
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
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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.
