overpromise

verb

over·​prom·​ise ˌō-vər-ˈprä-məs 

overpromised; overpromising

transitive + intransitive

: to promise more than is possible or realistic

Political candidates always overpromise or else the electorate won't bother to show up at their rallies.

—Michael Gomez

… received sharp criticism for overpromising and underperforming.

—Industry Week

Then a change in the Facebook algorithm punished click bait, which can tend to overpromise on what it links to. Steep traffic drops followed.

—Jim Rutenberg

To close a deal, bad vendors tend to overpromise features that they claim will be added down the line but never materialize.

—Michael Kan

Examples of overpromise in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Those who purport to be able to do more may be overpromising their services and taking advantage of victims’ desperation and fear, says Mike Prado at the Department of Homeland Security's Cyber Crimes Center. —Rachel Hale, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2025

The bigger problem for Gore, however, was that by attempting to tackle a gargantuan problem like government inefficiency through piecemeal reforms and voluntary retirements, some felt the administration had overpromised. —Jacob Bruggeman & Casey Eilbert / Made By History, TIME, 3 Mar. 2025

And avoid overpromising returns or offering unrealistic expectations—transparency and education are key to building trust. —Nick Green, Forbes, 13 Mar. 2025

However, Sagittarius isn’t the messenger planet’s ideal place to be, as this Fire sign’s love for big-picture thinking can often overwhelm Mercury’s fact-checking nature, leading to overpromising or losing sight of the details. —Valerie Mesa, People.com, 15 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1677, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for overpromise

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• characterize
• commercialize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize