overdose

1 of 2

noun

over·dose ˈō-vər-ˌdōs

Synonyms of overdose next

: too great a dose (as of a therapeutic agent)

also : a lethal or toxic amount (as of a drug)

: an excessive quantity or amount

an overdose of fun

overdosage

ˌō-vər-ˈdō-sij

noun

overdose

2 of 2

verb

over·dose ˌō-vər-ˈdōs

overdosed; overdosing; overdoses

transitive verb

: to give an overdose or too many doses to

intransitive verb

: to take or experience an overdose

—usually used with on

Example Sentences

Noun She died from a cocaine overdose.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

An overdose of everything good: the finest absolutes of tuberose, orris, orange blossom, sambac jasmine, chrysanthemum, and ylang-ylang. —

Roxanne Adamiyatt, Town & Country, 22 Nov. 2022 Boulder Care delivers thousands of naloxone doses—a life-saving drug that can reverse an overdose—and buprenorphine prescriptions—a medication approved in 2002 to treat opioid use disorder—to patients who need it. —

Kasandra Brabaw, Fortune, 16 Nov. 2022 Cullen admitted to administering Yengo a fatal overdose of lidocaine, which resulted in his death. —

Jasmine Washington, Seventeen, 28 Oct. 2022 The legal fallout from Skaggs’ fatal overdose includes wrongful death lawsuits filed by the pitcher’s family in Texas and California that have been consolidated in Orange County Superior Court. —

Nathan Fenno, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2022 Boebert said the person who died was beaten to death, but it was later reported that the man actually died of a drug overdose, per the Post Independent. —

Camille Fine, USA TODAY, 14 July 2022 Joines discussed police calls to the apartment that Aldrich and Voepel shared for Voepel’s suicide attempt and overdose. —

Colleen Slevin, ajc, 23 Feb. 2023 Joines discussed police calls to the apartment that Aldrich and Laura Voepel shared for Voepel’s suicide attempt and overdose. —

Colleen Slevin, Anchorage Daily News, 23 Feb. 2023 Joines discussed police calls to the apartment that Aldrich and Laura Voepel shared for Voepel’s suicide attempt and overdose. —

Colleen Slevin, Chicago Tribune, 22 Feb. 2023

Verb

The state has the nation's most per capita overdose deaths and will receive $83 million as part of the settlement. —

Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 19 Jan. 2023 The synthetic opioid fentanyl, much of which comes into the country via Mexican drug cartels, was responsible for approximately two-thirds of U.S. overdose deaths in 2021. —

Devika Rao, The Week, 10 Jan. 2023 Hamilton County stands to receive more than $7 million in the $26 billion nationwide settlement with an opioid manufacturer and distributors as overdose deaths linked to fentanyl surge. —

John Tuohy, The Indianapolis Star, 5 Jan. 2023 One name on the medical examiner’s list of 2017 overdose deaths in San Diego is Leo Holz. —

Erin Patrick O'connor, Washington Post, 12 Dec. 2022 Fentanyl was detected in 80 percent of all overdose deaths in 2021, according to the health department report. —

Joshua Needelman, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2023 Of the 1,018 deaths, 839 occurred up to a year postpartum, with mental health conditions – deaths by suicide or overdose – the top underlying cause followed by extreme bleeding, or hemorrhage, according to the report. —

Nada Hassanein, USA TODAY, 20 Sep. 2022 Illicit fentanyl has pushed drug-overdose deaths to new records. —

Jon Kamp, WSJ, 30 Dec. 2022 Also, provisional data includes all overdose deaths, while the final numbers are limited to U.S. residents, the spokesperson said. —

Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 22 Dec. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'overdose.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.