1
as in to invade
to enter for conquest or plunder
waves of barbarians overran the Roman Empire during its long decline
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of overrun
Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2026
Continue reading … STREETS OVERTAKEN — Waterfront overrun by massive crowd as viral takeover pattern worsens.
—FOXNews.com, 14 Apr. 2026
Michael Cox, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
Get the normally overrun streets of Venice all to yourself by visiting in the spring or fall.
—Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 25 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overrun
Verb
Each December, New York City is overrun with SantaCon attendees for one day.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2026
Continue reading … STREETS OVERTAKEN — Waterfront overrun by massive crowd as viral takeover pattern worsens.
—FOXNews.com, 14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
Amorim’s side were completely overrun, and lucky to only lose 2-0.
—Michael Cox, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
Get the normally overrun streets of Venice all to yourself by visiting in the spring or fall.
—Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 25 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overrun
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overrun
Verb
-
This would have come as news to the Highland Scots who invaded England in 1745 or the Irish Whiteboys who terrorized landlords and tax collectors a few decades later.—
Daniel Immerwahr,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
So, the price effect, the energy effect and energy prices from the Iran conflict is already, by some measures, as big or larger than when Russia invaded Ukraine.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
In March, a federal appeals court ruled Sykes, the judge in California, had likely exceeded her authority in requiring bond hearings nationwide and blocked her February decision.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 May 2026
-
In March, a federal appeals court ruled Sykes, the judge in California, had probably exceeded her authority in requiring bond hearings nationwide and blocked her February decision.—
Sudhin Thanawala,
Los Angeles Times,
2 May 2026
Verb
-
Rumors of affairs plague all royals, even those no longer with us.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
2 May 2026
-
The document outlines steps to address failures in the agency’s affordable housing programs and financial reporting that have plagued the agency since 2019.—
R.A. Schuetz,
Houston Chronicle,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
Restoration crews are expected to begin thinning overgrown vegetation and restoring native trees ahead of wildfire season this spring and summer.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Footwear News,
7 May 2026
-
No staging, no seating, just an ancient shell and pockets of overgrown grass.—
Daniel Cassady,
ARTnews.com,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
The five autism service centers raided by federal law enforcement on Tuesday as part of an apparent series of fraud investigations all utilize money from the same state program that two other providers have already pleaded guilty to stealing from.—
Conor Wight,
CBS News,
2 May 2026
-
Both restaurants, which were allegedly used in gambling operations, were raided by the FBI Wednesday.—
Alexandra Kukulka,
Chicago Tribune,
2 May 2026
Verb
-
Of those, 29 were acts of vandalism, surpassing the previous state record of 25 and marking the highest number of antisemitic property crimes ever documented in Georgia.—
CBS News Atlanta Digital Team,
CBS News,
6 May 2026
-
South Korea’s Samsung saw its market capitalization surpass $1 trillion as demand for semiconductors soared; fellow chipmaker SK Hynix also reached a record high, while Alphabet leapt on news of a $200 billion deal with Anthropic.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
6 May 2026
Verb
-
Aphids and leaf miners are the most common garden pests to infest spinach.—
Michelle Mastro,
Martha Stewart,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Among those lost were four maples and about 20 ash trees infested with emerald ash borers, said David Dammon, vice president of MVCC’s Administrative Services.—
Susan DeGrane,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Some 20 minutes away, three valleys over from Merthyr, Cwmcelyn Pond once fed water to the mines but is now a verdant nature reserve populated by ducklings, carp and anglers.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
6 May 2026
-
The four episodes are filled with eye-popping images, the enhanced green of the foliage and every verdant and precarious stretch of the island, but the show isn’t just visual candy.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
4 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Overrun.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overrun. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
