surfeit

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noun sur·feit \ˈsər-fət\

Definition of surfeit

1 : an overabundant supply : excess
2 : an intemperate or immoderate indulgence in something (such as food or drink)
3 : disgust caused by excess

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Examples of surfeit in a Sentence

ended up with a surfeit of volunteers who simply got in each other's way

Recent Examples of surfeit from the Web

These results aren’t surprising, as such, given the surfeit of polling showing how unpopular the Republican bill is.

— philip bump, Washington Post, "By a 2-to-1 margin, Americans prefer Obamacare to Republican replacements," 16 July 2017
These results aren't surprising, as such, given the surfeit of polling showing how unpopular the Republican bill is.

— philip bump, ajc, "By 2 to 1, Americans prefer Obamacare to Republican replacements," 16 July 2017
The president’s extremely loose regard for the truth, even for a politician, has produced a surfeit of fresh grist to verify—or more often, debunk.

— david a. graham, The Atlantic, "Why Fact-Checking Doesn't Faze Trump Fans," 5 July 2017
A surfeit of buttery-tasting croutons provide richness and crunch.

— bethany jean clement, The Seattle Times, "5 life-changing Seattle salads," 29 June 2017
But despite its surfeit of talk on that subject, After Louie seems dramatically undernourished; the director's ambitions are let down by his unrefined storytelling skills.

— david rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, "'After Louie': Film Review | Provincetown 2017," 25 June 2017
When a devastating international crisis brings with it an inevitable surfeit of topical documentaries on the subject, audiences can be overwhelmed to the point of inactivity.

— guy lodge, chicagotribune.com, "'Last Men in Aleppo' review: 'Last Men in Aleppo' review: Messy, harrowing account of living through war," 22 June 2017
Reporters had a surfeit of hearings, drafts, amendments, CBO reports, speeches, symposia and votes to cover, and those stories commanded prime media real estate.

— brian beutler, New Republic, "The Media Bias Toward “New” News Helped the GOP Hide Its Secret Health Care Plan," 22 June 2017
The new armed groups are the latest offshoots of a decades-long Muslim separatist conflict fueled by wrenching poverty, weak law enforcement and a surfeit of weapons in the southern Philippines.

— Washington Post, "AP Exclusive: Video shows militants in Philippine siege plot," 6 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'surfeit.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of surfeit

Middle English surfet, from Anglo-French, from surfaire to overdo, from sur- + faire to do, from Latin facere — more at do

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First Known Use: 14th century

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surfeit

verb sur·feit

Definition of surfeit

transitive verb
: to feed, supply, or give to surfeit
intransitive verb
archaic : to indulge to satiety in a gratification (such as indulgence of the appetite or senses)

surfeiter

noun

Examples of surfeit in a Sentence

having surfeited ourselves on raw oysters, we had to decline the rest of the restaurant's offerings

First Known Use of surfeit

14th century

Synonym Discussion of surfeit

satiate, sate, surfeit, cloy, pall, glut, gorge mean to fill to repletion. satiate and sate may sometimes imply only complete satisfaction but more often suggest repletion that has destroyed interest or desire. years of globe-trotting had satiated their interest in travel readers were sated with sensationalistic stories surfeit implies a nauseating repletion. surfeited themselves with junk food cloy stresses the disgust or boredom resulting from such surfeiting. sentimental pictures that cloy after a while pall emphasizes the loss of ability to stimulate interest or appetite. a life of leisure eventually begins to pall glut implies excess in feeding or supplying. a market glutted with diet books gorge suggests glutting to the point of bursting or choking. gorged themselves with chocolate