1
as in to defeat
to get the better of through cleverness
a real estate developer who is always trying to overreach his competitors, fair means or foul
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to exceed
to go beyond the limit of
the mountain climbers overreached their abilities and paid for it dearly
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of overreach
The premiere audience gasped and snorted in disbelief as Stan and Reinsve suffer the indignity of an overreaching state — removing teens, tweens and an infant from their loving care.
—
Zack Sharf, Variety, 18 May 2026
If governments operated with Hayekian principles in mind, there would be more robust commitments to checks-and-balances to ensure government doesn’t overreach.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 8 May 2026
The top 3 issues facing our communities in District 2 and San Diego are the high cost of living, crumbling infrastructure and overreaching outsiders.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026
In moments like these, emergency powers are not about overreach.
—Steve Scauzillo, Daily News, 4 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for overreach
Zack Sharf, Variety, 18 May 2026
If governments operated with Hayekian principles in mind, there would be more robust commitments to checks-and-balances to ensure government doesn’t overreach.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 8 May 2026
The top 3 issues facing our communities in District 2 and San Diego are the high cost of living, crumbling infrastructure and overreaching outsiders.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026
In moments like these, emergency powers are not about overreach.
—Steve Scauzillo, Daily News, 4 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for overreach
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overreach
Verb
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Across fixtures which mirror the opening half-a-dozen matches of the first team’s Champions League campaign, Newcastle were defeated on every occasion.—
Chris Waugh,
New York Times,
12 Dec. 2025
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So that led to the biggest shock of all when after Steven blocked Savannah’s vote, and Sophi’s Knowledge is Power fizzled in spectacular fashion, and Tres Leches seemed despondent and defeated… that Steven ended up being unanimously voted out anyway!—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
11 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Ryzhikov, 51, was the only veteran on the Soyuz MS-27 crew and has now reached a total time in space that only 12 other people in history have exceeded.—
Robert Z. Pearlman,
Space.com,
9 Dec. 2025
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The report exceeded Wall Street expectations and contrasted noticeably with 2024, a year in which Hurricane Helene was cited as a negative financial factor.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Local authorities in Pakistan said Tuesday that security forces killed eight attackers and thwarted an attempt to seize the checkpoint.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
10 June 2026
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Indeed, once the former’s economic situation forces them to withdraw from hosting duties just four years before kickoff, the opportunist pulls out every unscrupulous trick in the book to thwart the rival bids from, ironically, Canada and USA.—
Jon O'Brien,
Vulture,
10 June 2026
Verb
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Seven decades later that number has climbed to seventy-three, while those in the richest nations have surpassed an average of over fourscore years, a number the Bible reserves for only the most vigorous among us.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
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In the meantime, there is a World Cup to win and Os Magricos to surpass.—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
10 June 2026
Verb
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Subscriptions started at $88 per week and included almost 300 templates for fake websites designed to deceive customers, a dashboard that allowed criminals to monitor their campaigns, a discussion forum where users could find collaborators and receive support, and keylogging capabilities.—
Will McCurdy,
PC Magazine,
13 June 2026
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The problem is, most people feel deceived when the person in front of them doesn't match the profile.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
Verb
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The Bulldogs fell behind 3-0 in the first and could not overcome the early deficit thanks to the efforts of OU starting pitcher Xander Mercurius’ 7 1/3 quality innings pitched.—
Hunter DeLauder,
AJC.com,
16 June 2026
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Chasing atomic limits To overcome that challenge, the KAIST team relied on first-principles calculations, a computational approach that predicts material behavior using the laws of physics rather than experimental data.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
16 June 2026
Verb
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But Bessent outmaneuvered his rival with the help of an unusual coalition that included MAGA figures like Bannon and Navarro and Wall Street elites who had a history of tension with Lutnick.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
8 Dec. 2025
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Mamdani will lead a city of over 8 million people, the capital of media, finance and much else, whose annual budget tops $116 billion, after outmaneuvering rivals with decades more experience in a race that captured national attention.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Don’t outsmart yourself, which McDaniel occasionally does, including that late first-half pass that Tagovailoa almost turned into a devastating backward pass.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
7 Dec. 2025
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As their twisted lies unravel, Nora and Jack scramble to outsmart one another — with only one of them set to come out on top.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overreach.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overreach. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
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