overwhelming

American  

[oh-ver-hwel-ming, -wel-] / ˌoʊ vərˈʰwɛl mɪŋ, -ˈwɛl- /

adjective

1. that overwhelms; overpowering.

   The temptation to despair may become overwhelming.

2. so great as to render resistance or opposition useless.

   an overwhelming majority.

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overwhelming British  

/ ˌəʊvəˈwɛlmɪŋ /

adjective

1. overpowering in effect, number, or force

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Usage

What’s the difference between overwhelming and underwhelming? The over- in overwhelming means “too much” and the under- in underwhelming essentially means “too little,” and the two words can be direct opposites, but they’re usually used in different contexts. The verb overwhelm most commonly means to cause to be overcome with emotion as a result of an amount of something (work, stress, etc.) that’s just too much to handle. Something that’s overwhelming causes you to be overcome in this way. Underwhelm means to fail to impress, especially when that is the expectation. Underwhelming, then, means unimpressive or disappointing. Both words also have other adjective forms: overwhelmed (overcome to the point of not being able to manage) and underwhelmed (unimpressed or disappointed). Things that are overwhelming don’t always involve stress or other negative emotions. A friend’s generosity or the birth of a child can be overwhelming. Still, it’s usually about feeling a lot. In this way, underwhelming can be the opposite of overwhelming in some situations. For example, the same concert may be overwhelming for one person (perhaps it’s the first concert they’ve ever attended) but underwhelming for someone else (maybe because it doesn’t meet their high expectations). And, yes, whelm is a word. It can mean the same thing as overwhelm, but it’s very rarely used. Here’s an example of overwhelming and underwhelming used correctly in the same sentence. Example: It was a bad dining experience—the noise in the restaurant was overwhelming and the food was underwhelming. Want to learn more? Read the breakdown of the difference between overwhelm and underwhelm.

Other Word Forms

• overwhelmingly adverb
• overwhelmingness noun

Etymology

Origin of overwhelming

First recorded in 1565–75; overwhelm + -ing ²

Explanation

Something overwhelming is very intense and hard to deal with: overwhelming events make people worried and stressed out. It's hard to overcome overwhelming things. If you feel an overwhelming need to laugh, you're probably going to laugh. If you have an overwhelming feeling of sadness, you'll probably cry. An overwhelming amount of homework is almost impossible to get done. Adults who work, have families, and struggle to pay the bills feel like their lives are overwhelming. A tornado or hurricane is an overwhelming force of nature. When something is overwhelming, there's not much you can do against it.

Example Sentences

An overwhelming majority of them, 90%, were linked to an outbreak.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2026

In 2022, he decided to share his CEO job—it had felt overwhelming, especially as he got older—with Eunice Lin Nichols, who’d worked for him for many years.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

The months zoomed by, the primary drew nearer, and something genuinely surprising happened: Platner solidified himself as the overwhelming favorite for the nomination.

From Slate • Apr. 13, 2026

There was overwhelming support among Christians, Druze and Sunnis; more than two thirds of Lebanese Shias disagreed.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

Similarly, the overwhelming majority of people on parole were convicted of nonviolent crimes.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Related Words

• amazing
• astounding
• crushing
• devastating
• mind-boggling
• staggering
• stunning
• vast