overzealous

adjective

over·​zeal·​ous ˌō-vər-ˈze-ləs 

: too zealous : having or showing too much zeal : excessively eager, enthusiastic, or fervent

overzealous parents

overzealous workers

… another version of the overzealous monitoring that has produced kids who leave for college without ever having crossed the street by themselves.

—Peggy Orenstein

The village saw the orders as unwarranted interference from an overzealous state bureaucracy and promptly appealed.

—Joe Treen and S. Avery Brown

overzealously adverb

… has been frequently accused by its critics of acting recklessly, overzealously, and even, at times, illegally.

—Steve Lustgarden

overzealousness noun

Jewell was annoyed that press descriptions of him always emphasized his "overzealousness"; he considers himself a man of details.

—Marie Brenner

Examples of overzealous in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The man, perhaps to get this overzealous church lady to leave him be, finally accepts the socks and hands back the rest. —Heller McAlpin, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Apr. 2024

A couple of overzealous fans are no match for Zendaya and Tom Holland’s relationship. —Shania Russell, EW.com, 9 Apr. 2024

From stories that explore the terrors of everything from demonic possession to overzealous faith to the thin line between belief and uncertainty, here is TIME's take on the 15 best religious horror movies. —Megan McCluskey, TIME, 5 Apr. 2024

The idea is more to create a chilling effect, bringing overzealous plate loaders back to reason. —Lauren Collins, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024

Charlie shot 16-over 86 in the first round, while dealing with overzealous fans and shaky security while on the course. —Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024

For a whole host of reasons — parental fear, overzealous child welfare departments, car-centric city planning — kids generally have a lot less freedom and independence than their parents did. —Michelle Goldberg, The Mercury News, 21 Mar. 2024

Householder's attorneys said the former top House Republican faced overzealous prosecutors and a biased judge intent on turning legal campaign contributions into a sweeping criminal scheme. —Jessie Balmert, The Enquirer, 27 Feb. 2024

Using too many harsh actives that disrupt the skin’s delicate microbial balance, and being overzealous with exfoliating agents, are huge culprits, as is excess exposure to UV, poor nutrition and even lack of sleep. —Georgia Day, Vogue, 6 Dec. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1628, in the meaning defined above