Dictionary.com

Popular Searches

 Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

overly

American  
[oh-ver-lee] / ˈoʊ vər li /

adverb

  1. excessively; too.

    a voyage not overly dangerous.
    Synonyms:
    inordinately, immoderately
overly British  
/ ˈəʊvəlɪ /

adverb

  1. too; excessively

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of overly

before 1050; Middle English; Old English oferlīce. See over, -ly

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Persevering with an overly challenging route is an experience some climbers will be able to relate to.

From BBC

A 1-0 home win - their second on the bounce - may not look overly convincing but Hearts were good value for the three points and rarely looked in danger of conceding to Aberdeen.

From BBC

Netflix itself, overly algorithmic, benefits from freestanding producers whose shows succeed by being, you know, good.

From The Wall Street Journal

A second group was told that MTV denied the overly dramatic label and said their shows get a ton of positive reviews.

From The Wall Street Journal

Boland says that while it isn’t overly concerning, an uptick in gross impaired loans was notable after trending down in recent quarters.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.