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

While occasionally careless or overzealous in possession, Eze can make tough passes in packed areas and backs himself to get shots on target from distance. —Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2025

Thomas was the only deaf student in the school and the overzealous hearing teachers gathered Thomas and me in a quiet room to meet each other. —Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2025

With penalties as steep as 10 percent of global revenue and potential jail time for repeat offenses by firms, platforms are understandably overcorrecting and taking an overzealous approach to requiring ID checks in hopes of avoiding liability. —James Czerniawski, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Aug. 2025

In other words, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle used to jealously guard the prerogatives of the legislative branch — the supreme branch, according to the Constitution — against overzealous presidents. —David M. Drucker, Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1628, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for overzealous

• bellis
• felis
• fellas
• jealous
• pelisse
• trellis
• zealous
• michaelis
• nucellus
• ocellus