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Recent Examples of overact
The college student performers from the Hartt School aren’t encouraged to overact during the party scene anymore — no more drunk jokes or pratfalls.
—
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Dec. 2024
One could easily be accused of overacting, of doing too much.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
There are few instances of someone overacting more in a movie, unnecessarily adding an undercurrent of murderous, jokey psychotic to an already bizarre creation.
—Mark Kennedy, Boston Herald, 13 Dec. 2024
The college student performers from the Hartt School aren’t encouraged to overact during the party scene anymore — no more drunk jokes or pratfalls.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Dec. 2024
In regard to overacting, Pacino addresses it on a case-by-case basis: Some movies call for it, like Scarface.
—Chris Stanton, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2024
The performances seems inspired by the over-the-top techniques of actors who tried to do too much when sound finally came to films, but were used to overacting.
—Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 25 Sep. 2024
Their turns are driven to cartoonish overacting in great part by the words they’ve been asked to say in English and in angry tones.
—Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 30 Aug. 2024
Meanwhile, Greenblatt’s playfully mischievous demeanor as Tina often reads as overacting.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug. 2024
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Dec. 2024
One could easily be accused of overacting, of doing too much.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
There are few instances of someone overacting more in a movie, unnecessarily adding an undercurrent of murderous, jokey psychotic to an already bizarre creation.
—Mark Kennedy, Boston Herald, 13 Dec. 2024
The college student performers from the Hartt School aren’t encouraged to overact during the party scene anymore — no more drunk jokes or pratfalls.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Dec. 2024
In regard to overacting, Pacino addresses it on a case-by-case basis: Some movies call for it, like Scarface.
—Chris Stanton, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2024
The performances seems inspired by the over-the-top techniques of actors who tried to do too much when sound finally came to films, but were used to overacting.
—Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 25 Sep. 2024
Their turns are driven to cartoonish overacting in great part by the words they’ve been asked to say in English and in angry tones.
—Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 30 Aug. 2024
Meanwhile, Greenblatt’s playfully mischievous demeanor as Tina often reads as overacting.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overact
Verb
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To say that there is no love lost between the two sides would be to underplay the depth of feeling here.—
Jack Lang,
New York Times,
9 June 2025
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The Takacs was already a fine quartet, with a lyrical, emotionally frank sensibility that rarely underplayed the character of a phrase.—
David Allen Chet Strange,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Marlon takes on the guise of a thug named Roach and of course overplays the role.—
Caryn James,
HollywoodReporter,
11 June 2025
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Having a semblance of moderated AI regulations and laws that are flexible and not crushing is potentially worth considering, but the inherent nature of any such encumbrances is that they will be overplayed and shut down AI innovation.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes,
19 Feb. 2025
Verb
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The Patriot Act was enacted following 9/11, that expanded search and surveillance powers of federal law enforcement and intelligence and effectively justified the tearing down of those privacy silos.—
Hessie Jones,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
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Many of those same states have also enacted measures prohibiting transgender athletes from competing in women's sports.—
June 18,
CBS News,
18 June 2025
Verb
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Comments Midway through season 6 of Boy Meets World, Rider Strong recalls feeling tired of acting out dramatic storylines for his character Shawn Hunter.—
Daysia Tolentino,
EW.com,
21 June 2025
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Hoyer could be acting out of self-preservation at the deadline of what might be his final shot in Chicago.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
16 June 2025
Verb
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In a clever flex of corporate synergy, Apple promoted its first summer blockbuster with the release of a haptic trailer that imitates the purr of an F1 engine in the palms of your hands.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
17 June 2025
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Fortunately, Lehane is a great enough crime author to be able to imitate a terrible one(*), and being more overt about that helps to better establish who Dave is.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
17 June 2025
Verb
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Today, Margaret would be playacting her own massacre in active shooter drills at school.—
Petula Dvorak,
Washington Post,
1 May 2023
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Trump’s modus, as ever, was to playact; his game has always been improv.—
Joe Klein,
Washington Post,
12 Jan. 2023
Verb
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Both supporters and opponents of the attacks are likely to dramatize events.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
23 June 2025
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This is a spectacle that is constructed by the federal administration to dramatize the threat, the fear, for people who aren’t local Angelenos, who are very far from the actual place.—
Hailey Branson-Potts,
Los Angeles Times,
13 June 2025
Verb
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In August 2017, a giant inflatable chicken designed to mimic Trump's features drew widespread media attention when staged near the White House as a form of protest, garnering viral interest on social media.—
James Bickerton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 June 2025
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Monoclonal antibodies are proteins manufactured in a lab and mimic the antibodies the body naturally creates when fighting an infection.—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
25 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overact.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overact. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
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