overbear
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to bear over or down by weight or force.
With his superior strength he easily overbore his opponent in the fight.
-
to overcome or overwhelm.
A spirited defense had overborne the enemy attack.
-
to prevail over or overrule (wishes, objections, etc.).
She overbore all objections to the new plan.
-
to treat in a domineering way; dominate.
to overbear one's children with threats of violence.
-
Nautical. (of a sailing ship) to have the advantage of (another sailing ship) because of an ability to carry more canvas safely.
verb (used without object)
verb
-
(tr) to dominate or overcome
to overbear objections
-
(tr) to press or bear down with weight or physical force
-
to produce or bear (fruit, progeny, etc) excessively
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of overbear
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:
I know that it is easy to overbear a person’s mind if you continuously barrage them with questions and accuse them.
From New York Times ● Nov. 25, 2011
But just because Karl Malden won't be brought to overbear on this doesn't mean Amex considers it unimportant.
From Time Magazine Archive
Or doing what may I have might such toil to overbear?'
From The Æneids of Virgil Done into English Verse by William Morris
He was the finest-tempered, most generous creature in the world, where no attempt to overbear interfered; but any show of offensive superiority would make a tiger of him.
From Tony Butler by Charles James Lever
If pruned the same, the grafted vines may overbear and quickly exhaust themselves.
From Manual of American Grape-Growing by U. P. Hedrick
"The current system is not fit for purpose. It is an overbearing mess and urgently needs to be reviewed," he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
Jumping between past and present, the film tells the story of Alex Serian, a cellist who moves to Los Angeles to care for his dying mother and escape an overbearing ex played by Olivia Wilde.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
Oftentimes these seemingly overbearing monitoring has nothing to do with how much someone trusts us.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026
Wagner, the founder of computer-education company 1010 Technologies, says his original design was a joke—more of a commentary on overbearing managers than a cover for lazy employees.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
She wanted to explain how right everything felt in a place where she was surrounded by mischievous children, overbearing cousins, and doddering elders who were all a part of her.
From "Copper Sun" by Sharon M. Draper
General Tzerclas said something, but my lady overbore him.
From My Lady Rotha A Romance by Stanley J. Weyman
He knew it was simply unpardonable, according to the rigid decorums of their code of manners, but the impetuosity of his joy overbore him, and he bent down and kissed her lips.
From The Prophet of the Great Smoky Mountains by Mary Noailles Murfree
He sighed deeply and shook himself and tried to rally, but though a part of him insisted that he gather his faculties and force them to alertness, another tired, lethargic self overbore the warning.
From I Conquered by Harold Titus
But his eagerness overbore everything; and took Titmouse quite by storm.
From Ten Thousand a-Year. Volume 1. by Samuel Warren
It rose and fell, faint and afar; the flutter of a moth’s wings against the greyish willow leaves overbore and silenced it.
From Bevis The Story of a Boy by Richard Jefferies
Watts was "obsessed" with Sansom, but it was not a case of "one person's will being overborne by another", the judge added.
From BBC ● Jan. 30, 2025
But Rains was all but overborne by the wooden acting of Hollywood Starlet Marisa Pavan.
From Time Magazine Archive
Charles Cherry is the over-bearing husband who is finally overborne.
From Time Magazine Archive
They were not overborne by the implications of Communist military power.
From Time Magazine Archive
It even makes Reynaldo a man who does not yield at once, but a person of honorable instincts who is overborne.
From Dramatic Technique by George Pierce Baker
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
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.
