as in protective
trying too hard to protect someone (such as a child) from danger
His overprotective mother won't let him go out after dark. He is overprotective of his little sister.
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Recent Examples of overprotective
In Seasons 2 and 3, Eleven and Hopper experience some friction due to Hopper’s overprotective concern for Eleven’s safety; by Season 4, the characters operate in totally separate storylines and don’t share a scene until the last minutes of the season finale.
—
Adam B. Vary, Variety, 8 Nov. 2025
Wagner apologizes, knowing that his relationship with his baby, who is now 27 years old, is too important to throw away by being overprotective of her (or of his work-daughter Kaya).
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
Burghardt wrote the script for the movie, which World Of Reel previously revealed will tell the story of a young woman on the autism spectrum who breaks free from her overprotective but loving mother in search of freedom, friendship, and a little chaos in the summer after high school graduation.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 21 Oct. 2025
Chaban stayed at Elite for four years and built a name for himself as being tough and overprotective of his models.
—Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 19 Oct. 2025
Mika takes a job teaching three young witches, and getting to know a grumpy and overprotective librarian, Jamie, who is also in charge of their care.
—Audrey Goldberg Ruoff, PEOPLE, 27 Sep. 2025
These 2025 Best of Beauty Award winners offer all the overprotective pros without any aggravating cons.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
Adam B. Vary, Variety, 8 Nov. 2025
Wagner apologizes, knowing that his relationship with his baby, who is now 27 years old, is too important to throw away by being overprotective of her (or of his work-daughter Kaya).
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
Burghardt wrote the script for the movie, which World Of Reel previously revealed will tell the story of a young woman on the autism spectrum who breaks free from her overprotective but loving mother in search of freedom, friendship, and a little chaos in the summer after high school graduation.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 21 Oct. 2025
Chaban stayed at Elite for four years and built a name for himself as being tough and overprotective of his models.
—Hikmat Mohammed, Footwear News, 19 Oct. 2025
Mika takes a job teaching three young witches, and getting to know a grumpy and overprotective librarian, Jamie, who is also in charge of their care.
—Audrey Goldberg Ruoff, PEOPLE, 27 Sep. 2025
These 2025 Best of Beauty Award winners offer all the overprotective pros without any aggravating cons.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overprotective
Adjective
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Many women with natural hair can empathize with the breakage concerns and tediousness that can arise when taking down protective styles.—
Caché McClay,
USA Today,
7 Nov. 2025
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Some dietary supplements can help with bloating by improving factors like gut bacteria, digestion, and the gut’s protective barrier.—
Merve Ceylan,
Health,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The film follows Ren, a 16-year-old Filipino-Italian teenager trapped in his mother Mia’s possessive love, who must break free during a three-day Filipino wake as Typhoon Edith approaches Manila.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
31 Oct. 2025
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Some will even feel possessive.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
12 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Neither a film noir femme fatale nor a jealous housewife, Sarah Trafford (Ruth Wilson) has come to Oxford Investigations for help in solving a mystery that has little to do with her own life.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
30 Oct. 2025
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During an appearance on The Eli Manning Show in May 2024, Eli joked about feeling a bit jealous to hand over the character to Powell.—
Natasha Dye,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overprotective.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overprotective. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
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