as in rejected
to decide that (something or someone) is wrong; to rule against (something or someone)
The judge overruled the objection. His conviction was overruled by the supreme court.
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Recent Examples of overruled
Namely, the fact that Powell’s booksellers had been raising concerns about the use AI art long before the merch drop—concerns that management repeatedly overruled.
—
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2025
More on the Voters Right to Know Act that 72% of Arizona voters passed in 2022 and why it could be overruled.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 9 Sep. 2025
While the Board of Immigration Appeals has final say in the case and Bondi can not directly rule, the attorney general has authority to intervene in any of the board’s cases and overruled a previously permissible legal standard from the Biden administration's policy.
—Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 5 Sep. 2025
One Democrat, Councilor Nick Roberts, joined four Republicans on the committee in voting to approve the idea, but they were overruled by six Democrats.
—Jordan Smith, IndyStar, 31 Aug. 2025
The school board denied the petition but it was overruled by the San Diego County Board of Education, the first charter school approved on appeal by the county since 2003.
—Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2025
Following the Beverly Hills Unified School District board’s vote to display Israeli flags on all its campuses, Superintendent Alex Cherniss overruled the decision, citing safety concerns.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 30 Aug. 2025
Maybe general manager Andrew Luck, who was in the Stanford press box, should have overruled that call.
—Erick Smith, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2025
Roger Alford, who was fired in July for alleged insubordination, claims that political appointees under Bondi's direction overruled career staff and settled a major tech merger—Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks—in a manner that undermined the rule of law.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Aug. 2025
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2025
More on the Voters Right to Know Act that 72% of Arizona voters passed in 2022 and why it could be overruled.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 9 Sep. 2025
While the Board of Immigration Appeals has final say in the case and Bondi can not directly rule, the attorney general has authority to intervene in any of the board’s cases and overruled a previously permissible legal standard from the Biden administration's policy.
—Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 5 Sep. 2025
One Democrat, Councilor Nick Roberts, joined four Republicans on the committee in voting to approve the idea, but they were overruled by six Democrats.
—Jordan Smith, IndyStar, 31 Aug. 2025
The school board denied the petition but it was overruled by the San Diego County Board of Education, the first charter school approved on appeal by the county since 2003.
—Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2025
Following the Beverly Hills Unified School District board’s vote to display Israeli flags on all its campuses, Superintendent Alex Cherniss overruled the decision, citing safety concerns.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 30 Aug. 2025
Maybe general manager Andrew Luck, who was in the Stanford press box, should have overruled that call.
—Erick Smith, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2025
Roger Alford, who was fired in July for alleged insubordination, claims that political appointees under Bondi's direction overruled career staff and settled a major tech merger—Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks—in a manner that undermined the rule of law.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overruled
Verb
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She was discovered by a photographer in the lobby of a modeling agency that had just rejected her.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
13 Sep. 2025
-
Neither Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin nor the camp representing star forward Kirill Kaprizov are saying much after the team’s potentially history-making first contract offer was reportedly rejected.—
Jess Myers,
Twin Cities,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Miami’s cartophile Argentine defender Tomas Aviles saw his second yellow of the night after pulling back Toklomati and was dismissed in the 79th minute, leaving Messi and his teammates down a man for the final stages.—
The Athletic Staff,
New York Times,
14 Sep. 2025
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Fletcher, who was considered a strong contender for a state Senate seat in March 2023 when Figueroa filed her complaint, spoke publicly Friday about the allegations one month after a judge dismissed it.—
Jeff McDonald,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Her lawsuit denied the charges but did not provide more details.—
Sheryl Estrada,
Fortune,
10 Sep. 2025
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The doctor spent more than 1,300 days incarcerated while repeatedly denied bail.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But the friendship fell apart earlier this year when Farage refused to echo Musk’s support for Robinson, the founder of the now-defunct anti-immigration English Defence League (EDL), who was previously jailed for being in contempt of court by repeating false accusations about a Syrian refugee.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
14 Sep. 2025
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After handling raw chicken, an employee refused to wash his hands in the handwashing sink, instead of the prep sink.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The evening was slightly chaotic and quickly unsynchronized as the first dinner group, which included Sunisa Lee, Fabolous and more, ignored initial invitations to sit in lieu of sunset views of the East River from the 63rd floor balcony.—
Kristen Tauer,
Footwear News,
13 Sep. 2025
-
Mendoza ignored what her contract said.—
ProPublica,
ProPublica,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overruled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overruled. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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