overheat
Americanverb (used with object)
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overheats,
present (3rd person singular)
-
overheated,
past participle, past
-
overheating
present participle
-
to heat to excess.
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to excite or agitate; make vehement.
a crowd overheated by rabble-rousers.
verb (used without object)
-
overheats,
present (3rd person singular)
-
overheated,
past participle, past
-
overheating
present participle
noun
verb
-
to make or become excessively hot
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(tr; often passive) to make very agitated, irritated, etc
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(intr) (of an economy) to tend towards inflation, often as a result of excessive growth in demand
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(tr) to cause (an economy) to tend towards inflation
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
overheatsimple
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overheatssimple
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have overheatedperfect
-
has overheatedperfect
-
am overheatingprogressive
-
are overheatingprogressive
-
is overheatingprogressive
-
have been overheatingperfect progressive
-
has been overheatingperfect progressive
Past
-
overheatedsimple
-
had overheatedperfect
-
was overheatingprogressive
-
were overheatingprogressive
-
had been overheatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of overheat
First recorded in 1350–1400, overheat is from the Middle English word overheten. See over-, heat
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:
A sail exposed to an extremely powerful laser could potentially overheat or even melt.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 2, 2026
And on a hot July day, he said the batteries were far more reliable than fuel generators that can overheat and cut out during summer.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
Those and other personal devices have lithium-ion batteries, which are prone to bursting into flames when they malfunction or overheat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
Ninety percent of UK homes will overheat during the summer by 2050, the National Housing Federation said.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
Fanning the smoke aside, she muttered, “I’ve never seen it overheat like this.”
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
People spend against the future before it is here, and the economy overheats.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
That overheats the present economy and pushes rates higher.
From Barron's ● May 9, 2026
Run the machine too hard and it overheats.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 5, 2026
Battery experts said it’s unlikely that a wireless signal alone — with no physical alterations — could cause thermal runaway, which typically occurs when a battery overheats, sustains physical damage or overcharges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2024
Wind blows through the flaps; sunshine overheats; and stars twinkle overhead.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Mining eventually faded, but cars on Route 66 overheated easily and often limped into town for water.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
It gets a little cringey, all the ring lights and posing, but I think the fretting over influencers is overheated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
She predated our overheated era of cable-news slapfights as a massive star and national treasure who never took herself too seriously.
From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026
When the Baeli family moved in 10 years ago, their house had draughty PVC double-glazed windows with little insulation - they struggled to keep warm in the winter and overheated in the summer.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
He ordered us out of the car, which was overheated and steaming.
From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
Electrical noise, cosmic radiation, and overheating can all introduce errors while information is being processed.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026
If the body’s system isn’t functioning properly, then there is a risk of dehydration, heart strain and overheating, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
In fact, not infrequently first hikes occur when the economy is so strong that it is in danger of overheating.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026
If overheating from the artificial-intelligence boom spreads to the broader economy, he said, “that’s just a regular old central bank needing to respond to the business cycle. There’s no ambiguity of what has to happen.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
And although they tried to create makeshift filters, the machines were fouling and overheating one after another.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
Definitions 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.
