overintellectualize

verb

over·​in·​tel·​lec·​tu·​al·​ize ˌō-vər-ˌin-tə-ˈlek-chə-wə-ˌlīz 

-chə-ˌlīz,

-shwə-ˌlīz,

-chü(-ə)-ˌlīz

overintellectualized; overintellectualizing

transitive verb

: to intellectualize (something) to an excessive degree

tends to overintellectualize emotions

What drives us food writers to overthink and overintellectualize what is, in essence, a plastic cup of sugar and ice?

—Kevin Pang

overintellectualization

ˌō-vər-ˌin-tə-ˌlek-chə-wə-lə-ˈzā-shən 

-chə-lə-

-shwə-lə-

-chü(-ə)-lə-

noun

plural overintellectualizations

… the overintellectualization of wine, the fussiness, the obsessiveness with silly adjectives …

—Jonathan Reynolds

After all my overintellectualizations on addictions, how corny that the answer's been one infomercial away.

—Susan Shapiro

Examples of overintellectualize in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Everyone always asks what my advice is, and my advice is don’t overintellectualize your art. —Vulture, 14 Oct. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1901, in the meaning defined above