1
as in thwarting
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 exceeding
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 overreaching
However, Dombeck is cautious about overreaching on BTSP’s significance.
—
Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 24 Apr. 2026
The bill’s supporters frame it as a blow against overregulation, viewing it as a necessary bulwark against (supposedly) overreaching state animal welfare standards like Question 3.
—John Cleveland, Boston Herald, 7 Apr. 2026
But some Bay Area cities and counties already have decided that the Flock Safety tools are too overreaching.
—Rick Hurd, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
That caused some unease in the business community that Douglas County was overreaching.
—John Aguilar, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026
Commentators quickly pointed out that Anthropic itself has faced high‑profile accusations of overreaching in its own data collection practices beyond the copyright case from authors, such as a separate case over scraping Reddit content.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026
The president’s overreaching mass deportation policy will continue.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
But the agency's conservative critics have long accused the CFPB of overreaching, punishing small lenders and harming businesses.
—Stephan Bisaha, NPR, 21 Jan. 2026
Our norms and expectations are being shattered by an overreaching executive.
—Noah Feldman, Twin Cities, 25 Nov. 2025
Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 24 Apr. 2026
The bill’s supporters frame it as a blow against overregulation, viewing it as a necessary bulwark against (supposedly) overreaching state animal welfare standards like Question 3.
—John Cleveland, Boston Herald, 7 Apr. 2026
But some Bay Area cities and counties already have decided that the Flock Safety tools are too overreaching.
—Rick Hurd, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
That caused some unease in the business community that Douglas County was overreaching.
—John Aguilar, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026
Commentators quickly pointed out that Anthropic itself has faced high‑profile accusations of overreaching in its own data collection practices beyond the copyright case from authors, such as a separate case over scraping Reddit content.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026
The president’s overreaching mass deportation policy will continue.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
But the agency's conservative critics have long accused the CFPB of overreaching, punishing small lenders and harming businesses.
—Stephan Bisaha, NPR, 21 Jan. 2026
Our norms and expectations are being shattered by an overreaching executive.
—Noah Feldman, Twin Cities, 25 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overreaching
Verb
-
Frey unleashed his five-pitch arsenal, thwarting the Spartans most of the way.—
Paul Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
-
In long form, the writers can pack enough globe-spanning spy games, adrenaline-spiking set pieces, and terrorist-thwarting action to keep even James Bond – or Jack Bauer, or Jason Bourne – busy.—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Doe is seeking damages exceeding $75,000, along with other punitive damages and other relief to be determined at trial.—
Lexi Nicklaus,
Baltimore Sun,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Both teams had playoff probabilities exceeding 85% just a few weeks ago.—
Ian Miller OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Her The Wife nods and supports, all knowingly without deceiving the emotional truths of the narrative.—
Chris Feil,
Vulture,
1 May 2026
-
Swalwell apparently did an excellent job deceiving those around him, including some congressional and campaign staffers who’d known him for years and worked closely with the seven-term lawmaker, day in, day out.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The Indiana recruit has set team records for homers in a season with 15, quickly surpassing the 10 hit by 2022 graduate Kiley Conner, and in a career with 28, eclipsing the 24 hit by 2017 graduate Alex Hickey.—
Michael Osipoff,
Chicago Tribune,
1 May 2026
-
Charity is of particular importance to the London Marathon, even compared to other races, as this year’s edition broke yet another record, surpassing $118 million.—
Ian Servantes,
Footwear News,
1 May 2026
Verb
-
Swalwell won his congressional race, defeating a 40-year incumbent more than double his age, and grew his national profile by connecting with young voters on social media.—
Allison Gordon,
CNN Money,
4 May 2026
-
In all, according to a tally from AdImpact, nearly $7 million has been spent on TV ads this year in Indiana state senate races, the bulk of it aimed at defeating the Republicans who voted against the redrawn congressional maps.—
Tamara Keith,
NPR,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
The Strategic Powerhouses These names are inspired by women who lead with their minds, outmaneuvering everyone in the room.—
Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal,
Parents,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Ian Terry won Big Brother season 14 at just 21 years old, becoming the show’s youngest champion after outmaneuvering veteran players with a quiet — but highly calculated — game.—
Samantha Stutsman,
PEOPLE,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
More Than One Way to Survive in Business Entrepreneurs have been positioned to accept that overcoming the competition is the only way to succeed in business, but there may be other paths forward.—
Daniel Fusch,
USA Today,
1 May 2026
-
The Blackbeard project aims to achieve all this while overcoming the obstacles that have hindered previous attempts at hypersonic weaponry.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Bob Markle was good at outwitting violators.—
Dave Duffey,
Outdoor Life,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Folktales are filled with people fighting to survive in forests, steppes, and deserts, and evading and outwitting the wild beasts that dwell within them.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Overreaching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overreaching. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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