oversell

verb

over·​sell ˌō-vər-ˈsel How to pronounce oversell (audio)
oversold ˌō-vər-ˈsōld How to pronounce oversell (audio) ; overselling

transitive verb

1
a
: to sell too much or too many to
b
: to sell too much or too many of
2
: to make excessive claims for
oversell noun

Examples of oversell in a Sentence

Hotels routinely oversell their rooms, expecting a small percentage of no-shows. Don't oversell yourself in the job interview. The salesman oversold the features on the new model.
Recent Examples on the Web For these examples, sectors with negative values may be oversold. Randy Watts, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024 Agencies responsible for the care and preservation of the site have warned about overcrowding and tickets being oversold, forcing authorities to find new ways to control visitor numbers as travel rebounds in the wake of the pandemic. Reuters, CNN, 30 Jan. 2024 In retrospect, the authors of the Great Barrington Declaration probably oversold their plan — the pandemic would likely have proceeded apace even with their approach, but there may have been less collateral damage. Cory Franklin, Twin Cities, 9 Jan. 2024 Highlight Your Ability To Grow The most important thing is to not oversell yourself. Expert Panel®, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2023 The market suddenly realized ASG was oversold a couple weeks ago, effectively suggesting that CEF investors—who tend to be more cautious than stock investors—are ready to admit today’s pessimism is overblown. Michael Foster, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023 The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is a momentum indicator that measures the magnitude of recent price changes to analyze overbought or oversold conditions. Frank Holmes, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2023 Electric Zoo oversold the festival’s 42,500-person capacity by 7,000 tickets on Sunday, the New York Police Department estimated. Paige Hagy, Fortune, 6 Sep. 2023 One strategy that sparks debate among frequent fliers is trying to negotiate an upgrade when a flight is oversold. Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Aug. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'oversell.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1576, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of oversell was in 1576

Dictionary Entries Near oversell

Cite this Entry

“Oversell.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oversell. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

oversell

verb
over·​sell ˌō-vər-ˈsel How to pronounce oversell (audio)
oversold -ˈsōld How to pronounce oversell (audio) ; overselling
: to sell too much to or of

More from Merriam-Webster on oversell

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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