as in too
beyond a normal or acceptable limit
there's no need to be overly careful about the rough draft, since we'll polish it afterwards
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of overly
Any higher seemed overly ambitious.
—
Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2025
Happy Gilmore The beloved '90s classic starring Adam Sandler as the overly violent Happy Gilmore is available to stream on Netflix — and so is its fresh sequel, Happy Gilmore 2.
—James Mercadante, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2025
The leather adds a touch of sophistication without feeling overly formal.
—Zoë Sessums, Architectural Digest, 4 Sep. 2025
In May, the Arkansas Supreme Court struck down the gag order, calling it overly broad and vague.
—Faith Karimi, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overly
Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2025
Happy Gilmore The beloved '90s classic starring Adam Sandler as the overly violent Happy Gilmore is available to stream on Netflix — and so is its fresh sequel, Happy Gilmore 2.
—James Mercadante, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2025
The leather adds a touch of sophistication without feeling overly formal.
—Zoë Sessums, Architectural Digest, 4 Sep. 2025
In May, the Arkansas Supreme Court struck down the gag order, calling it overly broad and vague.
—Faith Karimi, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overly
Adverb
-
That idea, that the changes are most prominent in academic writing, comes up a lot, but the shift has been observed beyond academia, too.—
John Werner,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Six separate receivers have caught touchdown passes already this season, a stark difference from a season ago when Green was criticized for being too reliant on a small number of playmakers.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
7 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
In addition, Apple seems to have been able to execute the upgrade without sucking up your spare storage with excessively large video files.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Nearly a decade later, Pharrell and Adidas have come together for the Virginia Adistar Jellyfish, an excessively chunky model with puffy, tentacle-like paneling inspired by its namesake animal.—
Riley Jones,
Footwear News,
3 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Yet most fans do not care unduly about what a squad costs and while sound financial management is welcomed, the strength of the team is the thing that is troubling them right now.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Leadership opinion, as opposed to stakeholder insight, can also unduly influence branding for a new enterprise or program.—
Lynn Godfrey,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Adverb
-
In extremely dense fog where visibility is near zero, the best course of action is to first turn on your hazard lights, then simply pull into a safe location such as a parking lot of a local business, and stop.—
KANSAS CITY STAR WEATHER BOT,
Kansas City Star,
6 Sep. 2025
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Lisa, 28, wore a black maxi dress with cutouts, and paired the look with an extremely rare Hermès Birkin while in South Korea's capital city.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overly. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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