overspend

verb

over·​spend ˌō-vər-ˈspend How to pronounce overspend (audio)
overspent ˌō-vər-ˈspent How to pronounce overspend (audio) ; overspending

transitive verb

1
: to spend or use to excess : exhaust
2
: to exceed in expenditure

intransitive verb

: to spend beyond one's means
overspender noun

Examples of overspend in a Sentence

The studio clearly overspent on marketing, and the movie was still a flop.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
That scenario is fictional, conjured up to mask the fact that Newsom and legislators have been overspending revenues for three years, ever since the governor erroneously declared that the state had an almost $100 billion surplus — long before fires hit Los Angeles and Trump was inaugurated. Dan Walters, Mercury News, 27 June 2025 One of the budget-busting items is not entirely related to the general problem of the City Council and the mayor simply overspending, overpaying employees and failing to plan for a rainy day. The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 26 June 2025 The low-cost and short time of development shocked global markets, sparking concerns that U.S. tech giants were overspending on infrastructure and wiping billions of dollars of value of major U.S. tech stocks like AI stalwart Nvidia. Arjun Kharpal, CNBC, 29 May 2025 Under pressure from CEOs and CFOs, CMOs are often under-invested in marketing-specific tech while their companies overspend on general-purpose data infrastructure like data warehouses. Christian Monberg, Forbes.com, 13 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for overspend

Word History

First Known Use

1593, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of overspend was in 1593

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Cite this Entry

“Overspend.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overspend. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.

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