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as in arrogant
having a feeling of superiority that shows itself in an overbearing attitude an overweening administrator who simply doesn't know how to manage people

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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Examples of overweening in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web For those who truly want to reshape Washington’s overweening and militarized foreign policy, the best approach is not to engage in name-calling but to work to replace the existing foreign policy consensus and its disciples with something better. Emma Ashford, Foreign Affairs, 29 May 2020 Out of an overweening sense of modesty, perhaps, this won’t really come across to the uninitiated. Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Mar. 2024 Unlike Zakaria, Perl-Rosenthal doesn’t really believe that counter-revolutionary or illiberal reversals prove that the early revolutionaries were overweening. Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024 Historical precedent suggested the country’s overweening military authorities would not accept any outcome that went against their political agenda. Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 11 Feb. 2024 See all Example Sentences for overweening 

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

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Cite this Entry

“Overweening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overweening. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

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