overzealous

adjective

over·​zeal·​ous ˌō-vər-ˈze-ləs 

: too zealous : having or showing too much zeal : excessively eager, enthusiastic, or fervent

overzealous parents

overzealous workers

… another version of the overzealous monitoring that has produced kids who leave for college without ever having crossed the street by themselves.

—Peggy Orenstein

The village saw the orders as unwarranted interference from an overzealous state bureaucracy and promptly appealed.

—Joe Treen and S. Avery Brown

overzealously adverb

… has been frequently accused by its critics of acting recklessly, overzealously, and even, at times, illegally.

—Steve Lustgarden

overzealousness noun

Jewell was annoyed that press descriptions of him always emphasized his "overzealousness"; he considers himself a man of details.

—Marie Brenner

Examples of overzealous in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But Stiller was also overzealous on set, Weiss said on a recent episode of Pod Meets World — a Boy Meets World rewatch podcast hosted by Danielle Fishel, Rider Strong and Will Friedle. —Virginia Chamlee, People.com, 2 May 2025

Tkachuk actually was a bit overzealous in the first period. —Josh Yohe, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2025

The agency has drawn Republican criticism for years, with some lawmakers viewing it as overzealous or unnecessary since other federal agencies already regulate the financial sector. —CBS News, 17 Apr. 2025

During his first few months at the helm, Lurie, who campaigned as a tough-on-crime candidate, has made inroads on several key fronts, though his office has also been forced to acknowledge the new mayor might have been overzealous in some of his campaign promises. —Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 14 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1628, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for overzealous

• bellis
• felis
• fellas
• jealous
• pelisse
• trellis
• zealous
• michaelis
• nucellus
• ocellus