as in surplus
the state or an instance of going beyond what is usual, proper, or needed
the song already borders on the maudlin—the addition of a syrupy string accompaniment would just be overkill
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Recent Examples of overkill
The investors who had pumped trillions of dollars into tech stocks over the last few years worried whether the tens of billions of dollars that tech companies were spending on new data centers suddenly looked like comic overkill.
—
Karen Weise, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2025
Even the Obama administration had not engaged in this kind of prosecutorial overkill.
—The Editors, National Review, 28 Jan. 2025
Over 150 companies, including Siemens, Heineken, Renault and Airbus, expressed concerns about potential regulatory overkill.
—Ozan Ozerk, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
But the real star is Fowler’s shape-shifting filmmaking, which is deft enough to revel in blockbuster overkill and skewer it at the same time.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 18 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for overkill
Karen Weise, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2025
Even the Obama administration had not engaged in this kind of prosecutorial overkill.
—The Editors, National Review, 28 Jan. 2025
Over 150 companies, including Siemens, Heineken, Renault and Airbus, expressed concerns about potential regulatory overkill.
—Ozan Ozerk, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
But the real star is Fowler’s shape-shifting filmmaking, which is deft enough to revel in blockbuster overkill and skewer it at the same time.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 18 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for overkill
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overkill
Noun
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That, and the surplus of mentors who played for Dad before him.—
Sam Cohn,
Baltimore Sun,
24 Mar. 2025
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During the Legislature’s budget session in 2023, Minnesota was working with an $18 billion surplus and approved a budget of $72 billion, a jump from the previous $52 billion budget.—
Mary Murphy,
Twin Cities,
22 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Photographed memorably on Gisele Bündchen by Nick Knight, the collection became emblematic of early-aughts excess and the bold, if controversial, cultural mashups of John Galliano’s Dior reign.—
Lilah Ramzi,
Vogue,
18 Mar. 2025
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This excess leads to various plumbing and health problems, including mineral deposits on plumbing fixtures, restricted water flow through pipes, dry skin and hair, and prematurely faded clothing and other laundry items.—
Timothy Dale,
Better Homes & Gardens,
14 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The Healey administration said the decision to bar people from sleeping on the floor of the airport came as an overflow shelter opened at a former prison in Norfolk last summer.—
Lance Reynolds,
Boston Herald,
14 Mar. 2025
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During rainstorms, runoff sometimes overwhelms the plant’s sewage treatment system, dumping a mixture of sewage and storm runoff directly into the Pacific Ocean – an event known as a combined sewer overflow.—
Robin Kundis Craig,
The Conversation,
5 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overkill.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overkill. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.
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