surfeit 1 of 2

Definition of surfeitnext

surfeit

2 of 2

verb

as in to glut
to fill with food to capacity having surfeited ourselves on raw oysters, we had to decline the rest of the restaurant's offerings

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word surfeit different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of surfeit are cloy, glut, gorge, pall, sate, and satiate. While all these words mean "to fill to repletion," surfeit implies a nauseating repletion.

surfeited themselves with junk food

When could cloy be used to replace surfeit?

While in some cases nearly identical to surfeit, cloy stresses the disgust or boredom resulting from such surfeiting.

sentimental pictures that cloy after a while

In what contexts can glut take the place of surfeit?

While the synonyms glut and surfeit are close in meaning, glut implies excess in feeding or supplying.

a market glutted with diet books

Where would gorge be a reasonable alternative to surfeit?

Although the words gorge and surfeit have much in common, gorge suggests glutting to the point of bursting or choking.

gorged themselves with chocolate

When might pall be a better fit than surfeit?

The synonyms pall and surfeit are sometimes interchangeable, but pall emphasizes the loss of ability to stimulate interest or appetite.

a life of leisure eventually begins to pall

How do satiate and sate relate to one another, in the sense of surfeit?

Both satiate and sate may sometimes imply only complete satisfaction but more often suggest repletion that has destroyed interest or desire.

years of globe-trotting had satiated their interest in travel
readers were sated with sensationalistic stories

How is the word surfeit different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of surfeit are cloy, glut, gorge, pall, sate, and satiate. While all these words mean "to fill to repletion," surfeit implies a nauseating repletion.

surfeited themselves with junk food

When could cloy be used to replace surfeit?

While in some cases nearly identical to surfeit, cloy stresses the disgust or boredom resulting from such surfeiting.

sentimental pictures that cloy after a while

In what contexts can glut take the place of surfeit?

While the synonyms glut and surfeit are close in meaning, glut implies excess in feeding or supplying.

a market glutted with diet books

Where would gorge be a reasonable alternative to surfeit?

Although the words gorge and surfeit have much in common, gorge suggests glutting to the point of bursting or choking.

gorged themselves with chocolate

When might pall be a better fit than surfeit?

The synonyms pall and surfeit are sometimes interchangeable, but pall emphasizes the loss of ability to stimulate interest or appetite.

a life of leisure eventually begins to pall

How do satiate and sate relate to one another, in the sense of surfeit?

Both satiate and sate may sometimes imply only complete satisfaction but more often suggest repletion that has destroyed interest or desire.

years of globe-trotting had satiated their interest in travel
readers were sated with sensationalistic stories

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of surfeit
Noun
As a businesswoman, a single mother and a highly sensitive human, Moore made it through life thanks to a surfeit of loving kindness. Michelle Huneven, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026 The Islamic State emerged from the ferment of Syria’s civil war in the early 2010s, when Syria’s porous borders and surfeit of Islamist fighters offered fertile recruiting ground for all manner of jihadi groups. Matt Bradley, NBC news, 20 Dec. 2025
Verb
As a theater critic surfeited with plays, radio dramas worked best for me as an unplanned diversion in my car. Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 28 May 2025 But the younger people making theater now are drawn to it now because they’ve been surfeited with digital culture. Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2023 See All Example Sentences for surfeit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surfeit
Noun
  • Netflix was sitting on a surplus of As Ever products, including tea and baking mixes, totaling more than $10 million in value (so much so that the company started giving inventory to employees for free, putting the goods on card tables in various office buildings.
    Matt Donnelly, Variety, 17 Mar. 2026
  • Going away for 24 hours or 24 weeks These days the savviest travelers have either a surplus of time (the ultimate luxury) or none at all.
    Matt Ortile, Condé Nast Traveler, 16 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • The Beach is glutted with souvenir shops and rental car outlets, the study found, but lacks auto and household supply stores, bookstores and service stations.
    Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
  • This year, holiday gatherings were scrapped, the single father’s Christmas budget was slashed in half, and his credit cards were glutted from months of futile efforts to keep up with the rising cost of living.
    Alicia Wallace, CNN Money, 31 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • One of the things that struck him the most about the place was the lack of sunlight, and the excess of artificial lighting.
    Manuel Rueda, NPR, 20 Mar. 2026
  • Trump supporters are calling out his excesses, while suburban moms join ICE Watch groups.
    Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • The Raiders gorged in a different way, blowing the center market out of the water with a massive, $27 million per year contract for Baltimore’s Tyler Linderbaum and rocketing toward the top of the league in money spent.
    Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 15 Mar. 2026
  • Once in Dun, Mathilda gorges herself on strange delicacies while assembling disparate pieces of Hermia.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 12 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • These jalapeños are stuffed with melty cheese and wrapped in bacon for a classic bite sized treat that can't be beat.
    Mary Shannon Wells, Southern Living, 14 Mar. 2026
  • Vautin has created a true stationery smorgasbord, stuffed with creamy notebooks, wax seals, fountain pens and inks, wee porcelain bowls, mini-colored-pencil sets, gift wrap, highlighter pens, Hobonichi planners, a bounty of illustrated stickers, and washi-tape rolls by the dozen.
    Dan Stahl, New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • The 2026 Alan Ritchson–starring Netflix movie War Machine, not to be confused with the 2017 Brad Pitt–starring Netflix movie War Machine, is sating a public appetite.
    Chris Klimek, Vulture, 6 Mar. 2026
  • At one point, Roen said, officials even tried piling frozen beavers outside the wolves’ den to sate their hunger.
    Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 16 Feb. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Surfeit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surfeit. Accessed 23 Mar. 2026.

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