surfeit

American  

[sur-fit] / ˈsɜr fɪt /

noun

1. excess; an excessive amount.

   a surfeit of speechmaking.

   Synonyms:

   superfluity, superabundance

   Antonyms:

   lack

2. excess or overindulgence in eating or drinking.

3. an uncomfortably full or crapulous feeling due to excessive eating or drinking.

4. general disgust caused by excess or satiety.

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verb (used with object)

1. to bring to a state of surfeit by excess of food or drink.

   Synonyms:

   gorge, stuff

2. to supply with anything to excess or satiety; satiate.

   Synonyms:

   fill, gorge, stuff

verb (used without object)

1. to eat or drink to excess.

2. to suffer from the effects of overindulgence in eating or drinking.

3. to indulge to excess in anything.

surfeit British  

/ ˈsɜːfɪt /

noun

1. (usually foll by of) an excessive or immoderate amount

2. overindulgence, esp in eating or drinking

3. disgust, nausea, etc, caused by such overindulgence

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verb

1. (tr) to supply or feed excessively; satiate

2. archaic (intr) to eat, drink, or be supplied to excess

3. obsolete (intr) to feel uncomfortable as a consequence of overindulgence

Other Word Forms

• surfeiter
  noun
• unsurfeited
  adjective
• unsurfeiting
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of surfeit

1250–1300; (noun) Middle English sorfete, surfait < Middle French surfait, surfet (noun use of past participle of surfaire to overdo), equivalent to sur- sur- ¹ + fait < Latin factus, past participle of facere to do ( see fact); (v.) sorfeten, derivative of the noun

Explanation

Steve baked a surfeit of jam tarts. Steve ate a surfeit of jam tarts. Steve surfeited himself on jam tarts. Whether surfeit is a noun or a verb (as in "overabundance" or "gorge"), Steve is likely to end up with a bellyache. Overabundance, glut, gorge, and cloy: These are all synonyms for surfeit, and they all convey a sense of too-much-ness, as does the Old French root of the word — surfaire, "to overdo." When it is used in reference to food or eating, surfeit tends to suggest indulging to the point of sickness or disgust. In other contexts, though, the meaning is not necessarily negative: "A surfeit of kindness," for example, would hardly be a bad thing.

Example Sentences

As a businesswoman, a single mother and a highly sensitive human, Moore made it through life thanks to a surfeit of loving kindness.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 8, 2026

Any study of wars, poverty and other manmade crises shows us that humanity still suffers from a lack of empathy, not a surfeit.

From Salon • Dec. 1, 2025

The Victorians worried about a “world denuded of larger significance,” but we suffer from both material surfeit and spiritual abundance, and are captive to a surplus of competing and increasingly angry gods.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 31, 2025

In fact, the reviewer found Whale "the liveliest natural new personality to turn up on TV for ages", saying he possessed "a surfeit of punch and charisma".

From BBC • Aug. 4, 2025

Everywhere it reflected the authoritarian spandrels of his character, from its surfeit of policemen to its strict rules against picking flowers.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

Related Words

• glut
• plethora
• profusion