overact

Definition of overactnext

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of overact Snook and Lacy, who display such sharp instincts in their best work, seem to have been directed to overact; cameras freeze on their exaggeratedly bewildered or angry or devastated expressions, putting exclamation points at the end of too many scenes. Judy Berman, Time, 6 Nov. 2025 His presence is fresh, empathetic, often hypnotic, and never overacted. Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 24 Oct. 2025 One could easily be accused of overacting, of doing too much. Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025 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 See All Example Sentences for overact
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overact
Verb
  • On the other hand, its artistic approach and wider story arc underplay the horror of WW1 combat.
    Matt Gardner, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026
  • In a lot of ways, Abrams’ underplay show at the storied club, billed as a free evening with the star, was more than just a celebration of her new album Daughter From Hell or practice for her upcoming tour.
    Maya Georgi, Rolling Stone, 15 July 2026
Verb
  • Last season, Vítek Vaněček struggled in that role, which led the Mammoth to overplay Vejmelka for the second straight season.
    Jesse Granger, New York Times, 25 June 2026
  • Campaigners, meanwhile, don’t want to overplay their hands.
    Clayton Davis, Variety, 13 June 2026
Verb
  • The change was enacted in the state budget bill and took effect July 1.
    Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Americans kept lighting up, though, even after draconian federal and state anti-drug laws were enacted during the 1990s.
    Bob Woods, CNBC, 15 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Perhaps the threat wasn’t quite so dire, or its parameters were not well-enough defined, and the Secret Service acted out of a superabundance of caution.
    Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Some children act out when they are stressed, worried or do not understand what is being asked of them.
    Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 11 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Under Kirby Smart, Georgia’s defense remains the modern prototype most of college football aims to imitate.
    Noah White, Miami Herald, 18 Aug. 2026
  • For an industry watching this unfold, the lesson is not that scarcity marketing is a clever new tactic worth imitating everywhere.
    Olivia Shalhoup, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Today, Margaret would be playacting her own massacre in active shooter drills at school.
    Petula Dvorak, Washington Post, 1 May 2023
  • Trump’s modus, as ever, was to playact; his game has always been improv.
    Joe Klein, Washington Post, 12 Jan. 2023
Verb
  • The Trial of Louise Woodward will dramatize the story of Woodward, an 18-year-old British au pair who in 1997 was accused of shaking to death a baby who was left in her care by her host family in Massachusetts.
    Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 30 July 2026
  • Two teenagers, aided by an arborist, climbed a 100-foot pine tree outside a Pasadena high school Saturday to dramatize a campaign to stop a soil remediation project calling for the removal of nearly 200 trees at several school campuses.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2026
Verb
  • The casting of Lavernhe and Lottin is particularly inspired, as the two performers bring an affect to these characters that mimics the story’s dynamic.
    Caspar Salmon, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Punk exploded in front of a handful of scared-to-death dirtsheet reporters who were out of their league, mimicking a helpless Tony Khan.
    Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Overact.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overact. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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