as in too
beyond a normal or acceptable limit
there's no need to be overly careful about the rough draft, since we'll polish it afterwards
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of overly
Black Mirror's take on dating apps has been criticized as overly cute, and its twist too familiar.
—
Christian Holub, EW.com, 18 Apr. 2025
While no strategy can eliminate risk entirely, diversification helps protect your portfolio from being overly affected by the poor performance of any single investment.
—True Tamplin, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
Each letter comes across as a set piece, a small achievement of style and tone: Vasari’s flowery, deferential missives to the duke, Maria’s youthful ardor and confusion, the overly pious cattiness of a nun.
—Chelsea Leu, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025
Republican lawmakers have criticized the rule as overly broad and unworkable, pointing out that DeFi platforms operate autonomously on blockchains and often lack a central party to collect tax information.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overly
Christian Holub, EW.com, 18 Apr. 2025
While no strategy can eliminate risk entirely, diversification helps protect your portfolio from being overly affected by the poor performance of any single investment.
—True Tamplin, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
Each letter comes across as a set piece, a small achievement of style and tone: Vasari’s flowery, deferential missives to the duke, Maria’s youthful ardor and confusion, the overly pious cattiness of a nun.
—Chelsea Leu, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025
Republican lawmakers have criticized the rule as overly broad and unworkable, pointing out that DeFi platforms operate autonomously on blockchains and often lack a central party to collect tax information.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overly
Adverb
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Adam Wharton falls into this category too and for that reason completes my midfield.—
Adam Crafton,
New York Times,
19 Apr. 2025
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Many more children were affected by the bombing, too.—
Jenni Carlson,
USA Today,
19 Apr. 2025
Adverb
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If the connections go widely unacknowledged, that’s only because Hess’s body of work has been unduly ignored by most critics, let alone viewers.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
9 Apr. 2025
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In the digital economy, things are far more efficient and the rule is probably unduly generous.—
Lee Habeeb,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Apr. 2025
Adverb
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Western Conference Finals Potential Opponents: Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves or Golden State Warriors The expectation is that the Thunder will have a clear path to the Western Conference Finals, which will undoubtedly be an extremely tough series.—
Nick Crain,
Forbes.com,
20 Apr. 2025
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Revel is extremely talented, but the Bills need a corner who can step in and be good to go from the beginning of the season.—
Nicholas Creel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overly. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
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