over·sup·ply
ˈō-vər-sə-ˌplī 
plural oversupplies
: an excessive supply : an amount of something (such as a good) that is more than is needed or wanted
… if there is an oversupply of herring on a given day, the shrewd fishmonger will lower his price …—
Robert Kuttner
Robert KuttnerAlthough this means better and cheaper jug wines for consumers, the 122,000 acres of wine grapes coming into production over the next three years could well lead to oversupplies.—Daniel Sogg
Daniel Soggan oversupply of applicants for the available jobs
Information is in oversupply, and the audience wants someone who can help make sense of it.—Joanne Ostrow
Joanne Ostrow
over·sup·ply
ˌō-vər-sə-ˈplī
oversupplied; oversupplying
: to supply (something, such as a commodity) in excess
The OPEC nations have been oversupplying crude oil for more than two years, seemingly in an attempt to drive their main competitors—US shale oil and gas producers—out of business.—Jackson Stiles
: to provide (someone or something) with more than is needed or wanted
Jackson Stilesmanufacturers oversupplying the market
oversupplied
adjective
… the inevitable result of spilling a million workers into an already oversupplied low-wage labor market …
—Jeff Faux
Jeff Faux
Examples of oversupply in a Sentence
Noun
an oversupply of new homes is helping to drive down housing prices
Recent Examples on the Web
Valerie Trapp, The Atlantic, 17 Apr. 2025
Indeed, veterans of the whisky world understand that turbulence and challenging periods are part of the whisky cycle, most notably seen during the whisky loch of the 1980s when distilleries had to close due to oversupply and falling demand.
—Mark Littler, Forbes.com, 11 Apr. 2025
John Towfighi, CNN Money, 3 Apr. 2025
Crude oil prices tumbled on Wednesday due to concerns about a brewing trade war and OPEC+ oversupplying the market.
—John Towfighi, CNN, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for oversupply
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Noun
McLagan traces this shift in reputation to the rise of slaughterhouses in England, which led to a greater availability of meat as well as an oversupply of perishable, hard-to-ship offal.
—Valerie Trapp, The Atlantic, 17 Apr. 2025
Indeed, veterans of the whisky world understand that turbulence and challenging periods are part of the whisky cycle, most notably seen during the whisky loch of the 1980s when distilleries had to close due to oversupply and falling demand.
—Mark Littler, Forbes.com, 11 Apr. 2025
Verb
Oil prices plunged on Thursday on worries that Trump’s trade war will slow the world economy and that OPEC is oversupplying the market.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 3 Apr. 2025
Crude oil prices tumbled on Wednesday due to concerns about a brewing trade war and OPEC+ oversupplying the market.
—John Towfighi, CNN, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for oversupply
Cite this Entry
“Oversupply.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oversupply. Accessed 7 May. 2025.
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