overwork

verb

over·​work ˌō-vər-ˈwərk How to pronounce overwork (audio)
overworked; overworking; overworks

transitive verb

1
: to cause to work too hard, too long, or to exhaustion
overworked the horses
2
a
: to work too much on
overwork bread dough
b
: to make excessive use of
overworked tunes

intransitive verb

: to work too much or too long : overdo
overwork noun

Examples of overwork in a Sentence

The whole crew seemed exhausted, probably from overworking. The captain routinely overworked the crew. He overworks the melody in the song. If you overwork the dough, the bread will be tough.
Recent Examples on the Web Already, some community workers and police officers have complained on social media of being overworked. Vivian Wang, New York Times, 25 May 2024 Around 81% of doctors say they’re overworked in the 2024 Physician Compensation Report released today from Doximity, an online networking platform for medical professionals, and shared exclusively with Fortune. Beth Greenfield, Fortune Well, 23 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for overwork 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'overwork.' 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

1530, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of overwork was in 1530

Dictionary Entries Near overwork

Cite this Entry

“Overwork.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overwork. Accessed 1 Jun. 2024.

Kids Definition

overwork

verb
over·​work -ˈwərk How to pronounce overwork (audio)
1
: to work or cause to work too hard or long
overworked the crew
2
: to use too much
overworked phrases
overwork noun

Medical Definition

overwork

transitive verb
over·​work ˌō-vər-ˈwərk How to pronounce overwork (audio)
: to cause to work too hard, too long, or to exhaustion

intransitive verb

: to work too much or too long
overwork noun
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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