overreliance

noun

over·​re·​li·​ance ˌō-vər-ri-ˈlī-ən(t)s 

: the act or state of relying on something or someone too much : excessive reliance

One of my top priorities next year is to have an energy policy that begins to address all facets of our overreliance on fossil fuels.

—Barack Obama

I shy away from prescribing sleeping pills … to avoid overreliance on them.

—Andrew Weil

Examples of overreliance in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These controls are reassuringly analog holdovers at a time when overreliance on touchscreens often ends in distracted driving and a loss of connection to physical objects. —Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 25 Feb. 2026

May notes an overreliance on screens also increases the risk of anxiety, depression, eating disorders, self harm and a sedentary lifestyle. —Lina Ruiz, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Feb. 2026

Tuinman’s comments also highlight concerns over Europe’s overreliance on US military technologies. —Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 17 Feb. 2026

The consequences of overreliance on property taxes plus increasing levies are stark. —Joe Ferguson, Chicago Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1833, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for overreliance

• appliance
• compliance
• defiance
• reliance
• geoscience
• neuroscience
• noncompliance
• pseudoscience
• science