overpay
verb
over·pay
ˌō-vər-ˈpā 
overpaid
ˌō-vər-ˈpād
; overpaying
; overpaying
: to pay too much to someone or for something
… the debate over whether organic foods are a smart choice for healthier living or a marketing tool that gulls people into overpaying.—
Kenneth Chang
Kenneth ChangIt took my husband and me an hour with a representative to figure out we were overpaying for insurance and unlimited data plans.—Tanisha A. Sykes
Tanisha A. SykesBe careful not to overpay state taxes.—Carl T. Hall
Carl T. HallWe are not overpaying people; we are paying people what the market demands.—Renee Glover
Renee Glover
overpaid
adjective
… fuels the negative stereotype of the overpaid underworked bureaucrat.
—Joann S. Lublin
Joann S. Lublin
Examples of overpay in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Contenders are likely to overpay for a strong bat at the deadline, and Ozuna is sure to draw a lot of interest.
—Drew Vonscio, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 July 2025
The New Jersey Devils president and general manager added necessary depth to his forward group, did not overpay for veterans on the unrestricted free-agent market and left room to extend restricted free agent Luke Hughes, which is his top remaining summer priority.
—Peter Baugh, New York Times, 9 July 2025
In Maersk’s summer market update released Wednesday morning, the ocean carrier said most companies end up overpaying their tariff rate by 5 to 6 percent.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 2 July 2025
In December 2023, Community agreed to pay $435 million to the United States to resolve a similar allegation that the hospital system defrauded Medicare out of millions of dollars by overpaying doctors in exchange for referrals.
—Alysa Guffey, IndyStar, 2 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for overpay
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Drew Vonscio, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 July 2025
The New Jersey Devils president and general manager added necessary depth to his forward group, did not overpay for veterans on the unrestricted free-agent market and left room to extend restricted free agent Luke Hughes, which is his top remaining summer priority.
—Peter Baugh, New York Times, 9 July 2025
In Maersk’s summer market update released Wednesday morning, the ocean carrier said most companies end up overpaying their tariff rate by 5 to 6 percent.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 2 July 2025
In December 2023, Community agreed to pay $435 million to the United States to resolve a similar allegation that the hospital system defrauded Medicare out of millions of dollars by overpaying doctors in exchange for referrals.
—Alysa Guffey, IndyStar, 2 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for overpay
Cite this Entry
“Overpay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overpay. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share