overwhelm
verb
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Let’s face it: life can get overwhelming. A person might be overwhelmed by a sensory experience or emotion; a city might be overwhelmed by an influx of tourists. Things can underwhelm, too: a bland meal, a bare wall, a lackluster playlist. But how often does an experience just, well, whelm you? The answer, unassumingly, is just as often as one overwhelms you—the two verbs are in fact largely synonymous. Both come from Middle English whelmen, meaning "to overturn," and overwhelm has always been more popular, perhaps because the emphatic redundancy of overwhelm makes it seem more apt for describing reactions to powerful forces or feelings.
Examples of overwhelm in a Sentence
Ryan Chan, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
He had been captivated by the high-intensity football Marcelo Bielsa had implemented at Athletic Club, a style that had overwhelmed Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United en route to the Europa League final that year.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Indeed, after the pandemic—which initially decimated sales but then led to a surge in business that overwhelmed REI’s supply chain and operations—Artz made moves that angered many employees.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2025
Both of these will amplify that creamy base and give you amped up staying power without overwhelming the floral heart.
—Kimberly Wilson, Essence, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overwhelm
Cite this Entry
“Overwhelm.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overwhelm. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.
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overwhelm
verb
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