overflow 1 of 2

overflow

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to flood
to flow over the brim or top of while the wine steward stood there gawking at the nearby celebrity, my expensive champagne was overflowing its glass and pouring onto our table

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
3
as in to burst
to be copiously supplied a magazine that usually overflows with home-repair tips for the do-it-yourselfer

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 overflow
Noun
Thirty people watched the proceedings from an overflow room and dozens of supporters filled the main courtroom. Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025 Diddy is still paying Jane's rent As the day was coming to a close, Jane dropped a bombshell that drew gasps in the overflow room where my colleague Patrick Ryan was seated in. Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 7 June 2025
Verb
Best Amazon Home Deals Amazon’s home department is overflowing with deals on tower fans, cooling sheets, and more summer essentials. Isabel Garcia, People.com, 26 June 2025 Because of the vast increase in the number of people being detained by ICE awaiting court hearings, ICE centers are overflowing, creating a need for more facilities. Sophie Clark, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for overflow
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overflow
Noun
  • And that flood will continue for 10 years straight as the Rubin Observatory executes its signature project, dubbed the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST).
    Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 1 July 2025
  • Hubert was in Cape Girardeau helping with tornado and flood relief.
    Bella Waters, Kansas City Star, 30 June 2025
Noun
  • Speaking on Monday at Bloomberg’s Future of Finance in Ireland event in Dublin, Donohoe said that the government must use that surplus with an eye on the longer term.
    Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 23 June 2025
  • Meanwhile, the too-young Thunder are too-young no longer, an NBA champion with a surplus of draft capital still to burn.
    Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 23 June 2025
Verb
  • Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine have occasionally spilled over into NATO nations like Poland and Romania, which border Ukraine.
    Ellie Cook, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 June 2025
  • For dry or powdery spills: If a liquid spill has dried or something powdery has spilled, use a vacuum to pick up as much of the debris as possible, or upend the suitcase outdoors or over a trash can and gently bang it a few times to dislodge the dry matter.
    Jolie Kerr, Better Homes & Gardens, 26 June 2025
Verb
  • As the week goes on, heat will expand into the Midwest and the Great Lakes area before engulfing the Northeast this weekend in what will be the region’s first prolonged heat wave.
    Denise Chow, NBC news, 18 June 2025
  • In both the 2020 and 2025 videos, car 504 appears with its hood open, and car 658 is engulfed in flames.
    Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 June 2025
Verb
  • The actor and writer burst onto the scene at only 17 years old when director Michael Mayer found him and cast him as Ernst in the off-Broadway production of Spring Awakening, a role Glick reprised in the hit Broadway production.
    Maureen Lee Lenker Published, EW.com, 30 June 2025
  • The Cow burst onto the scene as an indictment of the rural poverty in which millions of Iranians lived.
    Tiara Ataii, Vulture, 24 June 2025
Noun
  • But that hasn't stopped a torrent of big news this week, from exploding Starships to significant reuse milestones being reached in Asia.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 20 June 2025
  • On a purely textual level, the sentences are a torrent, jouncing on rocks, gliding gleefully through mud.
    Jane Alison June 17, Literary Hub, 17 June 2025
Noun
  • The lavish display of money and excess has provoked backlash from local residents and environmental demonstrators who protest the use of the Unesco world heritage site as a playground for the super-rich.
    Karen Gilchrist, CNBC, 27 June 2025
  • An excess of Helena, which no one, least of all me, wanted.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 June 2025
Verb
  • This provides a tangible way to avoid overfilling and helps create a sense of accountability.
    Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 June 2025
  • Also, your bladder becomes overfilled to accommodate a large volume of urine and is less efficient in emptying, which leads to incomplete bladder emptying and possibly even urinary tract infections.
    Sara Reardon, Flow Space, 10 June 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Overflow.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overflow. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on overflow

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!