as in simplified
to describe (something) in a way that does not include all the facts and details and that causes misunderstanding
The article oversimplifies the problem. She tends to oversimplify things.
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as in simplistic
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Recent Examples of oversimplified
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 11 Sep. 2025
The challenge with both of these factors—the two most common in oversimplified risk tolerance short cuts—is that they are regularly ignored by the third and often most powerful (albeit least calculable) factor that gauges your gut.
—Tim Maurer, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025
Kornel Chang
september 19, Literary Hub, 19 Sep. 2025
The planet sitting below was dramatically oversimplified — just a smooth sphere with no geography or oceans.
—Zack Savitsky, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Users across TikTok and X have also continued to poke fun at the acting, dialogue, oversimplified device hacking and heavy-handed messaging about mass government surveillance and conspiracy theories.
—Austin Mullen, NBC news, 13 Aug. 2025
Verb
There’s a story worth telling here, a snapshot within a sprawling tragedy, but Avrich can’t make a bigger statement that doesn’t feel oversimplified.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 11 Sep. 2025
The challenge with both of these factors—the two most common in oversimplified risk tolerance short cuts—is that they are regularly ignored by the third and often most powerful (albeit least calculable) factor that gauges your gut.
—Tim Maurer, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Viewing their actions and ideas strictly through a Cold War lens has oversimplified Korean hopes and ambitions and flattened the complexity of their post-liberation experience.
—Kornel Chang
september 19, Literary Hub, 19 Sep. 2025
The planet sitting below was dramatically oversimplified — just a smooth sphere with no geography or oceans.
—Zack Savitsky, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Users across TikTok and X have also continued to poke fun at the acting, dialogue, oversimplified device hacking and heavy-handed messaging about mass government surveillance and conspiracy theories.
—Austin Mullen, NBC news, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for oversimplified
Verb
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The relationships that Mark forms in the course of his career are similarly simplified—principally, his hearty bromance with Mark Coleman (Ryan Bader), who is first his trainer and then, entering the circuit himself, a competitor.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
30 Sep. 2025
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In 1999, the Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) was released, which allowed mobile phones to receive and display simplified, phone-friendly pages using WML instead of the standard HTML markup language.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
22 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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While many fans are absolutely loving the new project — which has already cleared 3 million traditional sales in just a few days — others have criticized Showgirl for its simplistic, playful lyricism on certain tracks.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
7 Oct. 2025
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The truth about the Palestinian movement is of course far more complex, but the simplistic narrative has gotten a boost from Western populists, including those whose own ranks include openly anti-Semitic factions.—
Hussein Ibish,
The Atlantic,
7 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Oversimplified.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/oversimplified. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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