overpromise

verb

over·​prom·​ise ˌō-vər-ˈprä-məs 

overpromised; overpromising

transitive + intransitive

: to promise more than is possible or realistic

Political candidates always overpromise or else the electorate won't bother to show up at their rallies.

—Michael Gomez

… received sharp criticism for overpromising and underperforming.

—Industry Week

Then a change in the Facebook algorithm punished click bait, which can tend to overpromise on what it links to. Steep traffic drops followed.

—Jim Rutenberg

To close a deal, bad vendors tend to overpromise features that they claim will be added down the line but never materialize.

—Michael Kan

Examples of overpromise in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Investors will also quickly pick up on companies that overpromise and underdeliver — and yank their funds from the stock. —CNBC, 17 Oct. 2025

They will be sold on the premise that the Yankees are in a class of their own, even though the years since their last title in 2009 have largely been marked by overpromising and underdelivering. —Brendan Kuty, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025

For example, overpromising leads to a team that overpromises. —Muhammad Nabeel Shamim, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025

The attorney general has previously taken heat from some on the right for her comments about the case of the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, where critics argue Bondi overpromised and underdelivered on releasing documents. —Brett Samuels, The Hill, 18 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1677, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for overpromise

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• characterize
• commercialize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize