overflows 1 of 2

plural of overflow

overflows

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of overflow
1
as in spills
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 bursts
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 overflows
Noun
Minor tidal overflows, especially during the late morning high tides. — Ca Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 29 Sep. 2026 The governor’s office said the state was securing its harbors, deploying emergency personnel to strategic locations and monitoring dams for any possible breaches or overflows. — Dennis Romero, NBC news, 6 Sep. 2026 Weeks after overflows from Atlanta’s sewer tunnels contributed to the deaths of thousands of fish on the Chattahoochee River, the city’s Department of Watershed Management says its investigating another fish kill on a different river. — Drew Kann, AJC.com, 1 July 2026 As Connecticut’s climate changes, more frequent and intense storms have lead to more overflows. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 25 June 2026 The contamination, according to the organization, is often caused by sewage overflows, waste from large-scale farming, and urban runoff. — Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 25 June 2026 Researchers believe periodic flooding and river overflows helped preserve the eggs by covering them in sediment millions of years ago. — Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 23 May 2026 As long as the 83/17 split remains in place, protecting local waterways from combined sewer overflows will continue to exacerbate the water affordability crisis in Detroit. — Nicole Van Lier, The Conversation, 13 May 2026 That can allow attackers to leverage serious vulnerabilities like buffer overflows and memory leaks to compromise devices. — Nate Anderson, ArsTechnica, 13 Apr. 2026
Verb
South Florida roads and overflows sewage systems The National Weather Service in Miami concurs. — Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 23 Sep. 2026 Nowadays, the Bemelmans Bar overflows with tourists fresh off the bus and twentysomethings who have pre-screened it on Instagram, and has lost its old, beautiful emptiness, but doubtless the same pull that drew us draws them. — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2026 The history of oil overflows with examples of imperialistic overreach being confronted, eventually, by populist backlash, leftist governments, and asset seizures. — Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 1 Sep. 2026 Claudia Rankine’s new book overflows with grief for the backlash to racial progress, but history isn’t finished. — Charles Finch, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2026 Choose Camps Bay Beach for a party scene along a promenade that overflows with shops and bars, or take a stroll to Clifton, a more secluded beach partitioned into four sections by giant rocks. — Paul Jebara, Condé Nast Traveler, 27 Aug. 2026 It's believed the debris washed ashore following recent heavy rainfall and sewer overflows, according to local reports citing the NJDEP. — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 25 Aug. 2026 These overflows may send stormwater mixed with untreated or partially treated sewage into waterways. — Gabby Sartori, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2026 But the film overflows with childlike wonder, a comic-strip dream of girls next door and nerdy weirdoes growing muscles with puberty. — Darren Franich, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overflows
Noun
  • Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, a statewide research division, said El Niño is partly to blame for the recent floods.
    — Ava Berger, NPR, 29 Oct. 2026
  • From droughts and wildfires to floods and slow, rolling nature degradation, fashion’s nature risks are becoming impossible to ignore.
    — Bella Webb, Vogue, 29 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Using aggressive budget caps that force huge surpluses, the governor has used $11 billion since 2020 to shrink pension debt.
    — Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Fulton argued the proposition effectively would limit clinics from accumulating surpluses and reserves.
    — Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 17 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • The fast-acting solution is effective at lifting stains and spills off carpet, upholstery, and linens to protect all of your household fabrics.
    — Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 25 Oct. 2026
  • The second-floor primary suite spills open to a private balcony overlooking the pool area.
    — Tori Latham, Robb Report, 22 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • The tests could easily do the opposite, as people with results suggesting cancer require follow-up testing that overwhelms our healthcare system, potentially delaying diagnoses for people with cancer.
    — Torie Bosch, STAT, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Histamine intolerance is when histamine from food overwhelms the body’s ability to break it down, Hwang explained.
    — Lauren Finney Harden, AJC.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • In these moments, the actor bursts through his roles as the Spider does through Reilly, unleashing the Grand Guignol excess that is Nicolas Cage.
    — Harmon Siegel, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Things quickly take a terrifying turn during surgery when a scorpion tail suddenly bursts through Perry’s back, attacking one of the surgeons mid-operation.
    — Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026
Noun
  • Remember Popcorn Time, the app that served as an easy-to-use front end for streaming torrents of movies and TV shows?
    — Stevie Bonifield, The Verge, 23 Oct. 2026
  • There was also a time when leadership halted, then resumed, downloading torrents sourced from Anna’s Archive, another staffer testified.
    — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 20 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • The proportions remain practical, and the overall design avoids some of the visual excesses found elsewhere in the segment.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Trump is right to want to tame inequality, scale back some of the excesses of globalization, and secure supply chains of critical goods.
    — Charles Kupchan, Foreign Affairs, 19 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Every time the twitchy little bug stops for a moment, Snaggletooth focuses to prepare a pounce, only to be thwarted as the fatty snack buzzes to another spot in the nest.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Many speak Russian, but also maintain their own native languages and traditions — dishing out their best gossip in the saunas while a Lakers game buzzes in the background.
    — Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Overflows.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overflows. Accessed 3 Nov. 2026.

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