overshoot

verb

over·​shoot ˌō-vər-ˈshüt 

overshot ˌō-vər-ˈshät  ; overshooting

transitive verb

1

: to pass swiftly beyond

2

: to shoot or pass over or beyond so as to miss

overshoot

ˈō-vər-ˌshüt 

noun

Synonyms of overshoot

• exceed
• surpass

Examples of overshoot in a Sentence

The plane overshot the runway.

Sometimes we overshoot our time limits.

Recent Examples on the Web

An overshooting top occurs when a cluster of clouds pushes through the anvil and reaches the lower stratosphere. —Mary Wasson, Austin American Statesman, 5 Mar. 2026

The workers were traveling back to their office after delivering crude oil and other supplies in a farming village in Negros Oriental province when their truck overshot the road and fell into a 100-f00t-deep ravine, police said. —Arkansas Online, 5 Feb. 2026

This means not undershooting to the point of looking passive and not overshooting to the point of looking like a poser. —Gorick Ng, CNBC, 26 Jan. 2026

Stroud also overshot a wide-open Collins late in the first half — a completion would have set up Houston for points. —Mike Defabo, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for overshoot

• absolute
• arrowroot
• attribute
• bitterroot
• constitute
• convolute
• destitute
• disrepute
• dissolute
• execute
• institute
• involute

Kids Definition

overshoot

verb

over·​shoot ˌō-vər-ˈshüt 

overshot -ˈshät  ; overshooting

1

: to miss by going beyond

the plane overshot the runway

2

: to shoot over or beyond

overshot the target

Medical Definition

overshoot

noun

over·​shoot ˈō-vər-ˌshüt 

: a rapid change in electrical potential and reversal of polarity that occurs during an action potential when a cell or tissue is stimulated