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.

They’d been expecting a large file, but sorting through 400 pages was overwhelming at first.

From Slate • Apr. 6, 2026

Rate cuts in between scheduled meetings are very rare; the Fed hasn’t done so since March 2020, when the Covid shock was overwhelming financial markets.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

It was overwhelming, and I think I just wanted to pretend that it wasn’t and that I was comfortable with it.

From Salon • Feb. 20, 2026

“It feels like it was overwhelming with the off-the-field stuff, because I was traveling a lot and all that.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 17, 2026

The black nurses did their best to care for, comfort, and clean up the sick and dying, but their task was overwhelming.

From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy