1
as in to overemphasize
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Recent Examples of overplay
Successful vagueposters inject their posts with just enough dramatic flair to attract curiosity, careful not to overplay their hand.
—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Advertisement China might overplay its hand—that remains a real danger.
—
Kerry Brown,
Time,
31 Oct. 2025
But Barkley suggested the players should be careful to not overplay their hand.
—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
10 Oct. 2025
While there are risks for Democrats to overplay their hand in several blue states, members of the party warn there’s risk for their GOP counterparts in red states just the same.
—
Caroline Vakil,
The Hill,
7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overplay
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Advertisement China might overplay its hand—that remains a real danger.
—
Kerry Brown,
Time,
31 Oct. 2025
But Barkley suggested the players should be careful to not overplay their hand.
—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
10 Oct. 2025
While there are risks for Democrats to overplay their hand in several blue states, members of the party warn there’s risk for their GOP counterparts in red states just the same.
—
Caroline Vakil,
The Hill,
7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overplay
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overplay
Verb
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That distinction matters because modern entrepreneurship discussions often overemphasize innovation while underestimating execution, timing, leadership, strategy, competitive positioning, and entrepreneurial control.
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The old name overemphasized the role of the ovary in this condition and did not describe how PMOS can affect many body systems.
Verb
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The scale of the exposure is easy to underplay.
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YouTube as the new film school, YouTube as the new film festival, YouTube as the new music-video breeding ground — is to dramatically underplay it.
Verb
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Her direction here wisely emphasizes the actors, and possibly overdoes it with the mirrors — lotta symbolically reflective surfaces and isolating frames within frames — but there’s never the sensation that the person behind the camera is winging it.
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Happy Body Spritz bottles up that same nostalgia with its bright blend of ruby red grapefruit, mandarin, bergamot, soft florals, and woods, but in a lighter mist that’s nearly impossible to overdo.
Verb
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That secret shakes Charlie’s love for his intended, messes with work, affects his performance in bed and prompts him to spiral out, overacting at every step.
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Adrien Brody can’t stop overacting in a commercial for TurboTax.
Verb
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The four-time Olympian was not exaggerating.
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Many of the studies exaggerate the amount in human organs, the European officials concluded.
Verb
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Greenspan was also criticized for enacting policies that contributed to the subprime mortgage crisis that led to the recession at the end of the 2000s.
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After the collapse, state legislators enacted a law in 2022 requiring condo associations to have sufficient reserves to cover major repairs.
Verb
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Consumer demand for sustainability and traceability has been grossly overstated.
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Granted, most of his reps came against players who are on the fringe of the roster, yet the performance can’t be overstated.
Verb
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Lawmakers must resist the temptation to act out of fear to block the growth of AI and its still largely unknown benefits.
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But, again, is acting out of expediency and the desire to streamline a conclusive end the same as delivering a final season representing the best of The Bear?
Cite this Entry
“Overplay.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overplay. Accessed 30 Jun. 2026.
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