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
During the McCarthy era, overreaching laws, surveillance, and public and private sector reprisals ostensibly targeted alleged communists.
—
Bruce Schneier, The Conversation, 27 May 2026
Politically, the industry was equal parts liberal and libertarian, and was perhaps best reflected by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, created to protect the denizens of cyberspace from an overreaching government.
—Jonathan Weber, Fortune, 19 May 2026
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
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
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
The challenge is to thoughtfully manage the gap between innovation and execution, maintaining momentum without overreaching.
—Ashwin Gaidhani, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 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
Bruce Schneier, The Conversation, 27 May 2026
Politically, the industry was equal parts liberal and libertarian, and was perhaps best reflected by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, created to protect the denizens of cyberspace from an overreaching government.
—Jonathan Weber, Fortune, 19 May 2026
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
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
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
The challenge is to thoughtfully manage the gap between innovation and execution, maintaining momentum without overreaching.
—Ashwin Gaidhani, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overreaching
Verb
-
Scenes at the coveted Edwards Ranch — the property Rip and Beth took over, thwarting Beulah Jackson's (Annette Bening) plans to expand her land — were filmed at the real-life Saunders Ranch in Weatherford, Texas.—
Emily Blackwood,
PEOPLE,
5 June 2026
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Brendan Fraser is on hand as well, playing a jerky LAPD detective who keeps stepping on Diamond’s toes, thwarting the private eye’s shrewd attempts to crack the case.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
20 May 2026
Verb
-
The drone boat has supposedly survived a range of sea states that included waves exceeding five feet in height.—
Jeremy Hsu,
ArsTechnica,
9 June 2026
-
Kansas City has gotten off to one of its wettest starts on record, with April and May driving the total and far exceeding normal precipitation for those two months.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
But O’Malley writes that this is deceiving.—
Livia Gershon,
JSTOR Daily,
9 June 2026
-
He was also accused of deceiving escrow agents to secure the release of pre-construction condo deposits and then misappropriated those funds for personal expenses unrelated to the developments.—
Jay Weaver
June 6,
Miami Herald,
6 June 2026
Verb
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Brunson’s 45 points were also the most ever by a Knicks player in an NBA Finals game, surpassing Willis Reed’s 38 against the Los Angeles Lakers in 1970.—
C.J. Holmes,
New York Daily News,
14 June 2026
-
The offering leapfrogs SpaceX to become the largest global IPO, surpassing the current record holder, Saudi Aramco.—
Mary Cunningham,
CBS News,
12 June 2026
Verb
-
After defeating fellow American Kyle Daukaus, fighter Bo Nickal praised the president.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
15 June 2026
-
Cardenas is currently running for re-election to the Board of Review, and won the Democratic primary in March, defeating former Friends of the Parks executive director Juanita Irizarry.—
Todd Feurer,
CBS News,
15 June 2026
Verb
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Two generals agreed with Ashley's characterization, stressing the view that on the front lines, Ukraine was outmaneuvering Russia.—
Aidan Stretch,
CBS News,
9 June 2026
-
Rather than overpowering them with brute force, German forces managed to defeat the French and British forces in the Battle of France (1940) by simply outmaneuvering them.—
Matthew S Williams,
Interesting Engineering,
20 May 2026
Verb
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The barriers our students face have changed over the years, but our commitment to overcoming them remains the same as always.—
Albert D. Mosley,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 June 2026
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Rather than scaling software, their approach focuses on overcoming physical bottlenecks—verified by the laws of physics—to build the foundational architecture for the broader space economy.—
Alexandra Vidyuk,
Forbes.com,
12 June 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 16 Jun. 2026.
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