as in excesses
the state or an instance of going beyond what is usual, proper, or needed
the song already borders on the maudlin—the addition of a syrupy string accompaniment would just be overkill
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overkills
Noun
-
Stylish excesses are dialed back as cleaner camerawork, steadier editing and Farrell’s tender narration let the character breathe, blending sci-fi curiosity with classic detective-story stakes.—
Robert Lloyd,
Los Angeles Times,
19 June 2026 -
And some creators, like Yeezy, see their right to print guns as an essential bulwark against the darkest excesses of America’s current government.—
Jack Crosbie,
Rolling Stone,
17 June 2026
Noun
-
And while average state surpluses over the past decade have surpassed that number many times over, Connecticut’s budget is subject to a spending cap that ties its own growth to household income and inflation.—
Keith M. Phaneuf,
Hartford Courant,
19 June 2026
-
As those temporary surpluses faded, homelessness spending fell sharply.—
Benjamin F. Henwood,
Fortune,
12 June 2026
Noun
-
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
Noun
-
Some samples from Jilin showed particularly high abundances of heavy rare earth elements compared to neighboring regions.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
18 May 2026
-
The ratio is also an important one because abundances of deuterium and hydrogen throughout the universe are thought to have been set during the Big Bang itself.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
23 Apr. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Overkills.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overkills. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
