overzealous

adjective

over·​zeal·​ous ˌō-vər-ˈze-ləs 

: too zealous : having or showing too much zeal : excessively eager, enthusiastic, or fervent

overzealous parents

overzealous workers

… another version of the overzealous monitoring that has produced kids who leave for college without ever having crossed the street by themselves.

—Peggy Orenstein

The village saw the orders as unwarranted interference from an overzealous state bureaucracy and promptly appealed.

—Joe Treen and S. Avery Brown

overzealously adverb

… has been frequently accused by its critics of acting recklessly, overzealously, and even, at times, illegally.

—Steve Lustgarden

overzealousness noun

Jewell was annoyed that press descriptions of him always emphasized his "overzealousness"; he considers himself a man of details.

—Marie Brenner

Examples of overzealous in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In addition to portraying Alec Baldwin's overzealous assistant in 30 Rock, Pancholy also voiced Baljeet in Phineas and Ferb. —Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024

Mating only occurs during specific times of the year, and female frogs are often largely outnumbered by their male counterparts, so the rivalry is born of necessity — better to be overzealous than sleep on the prize. —Sofia Quaglia, Discover Magazine, 6 Nov. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1628, in the meaning defined above