overcoming

verb

present participle of overcome
1
as in defeating
to achieve a victory over the baseball team finally overcame their opponents in the 13th inning

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in overwhelming
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress already under stress, she was overcome by news of a death in the family

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 overcoming His early story is known as one of overcoming difficult circumstances and finding a creative outlet in music. — Kaitlyn Gomez, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026 The song addresses overcoming adversity and using others’ doubts to fuel your passion. — Melinda Newman, Billboard, 22 Oct. 2026 Jigar Shah, an expert in clean energy financing and deployment, said the Peace Bridge Place system is a milestone in overcoming safety concerns. — Jennifer McDermott, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026 Others discussed overcoming the initial awkwardness of the work and finding satisfaction in helping doctors become more competent and compassionate. — Daniel Hunt, Sacbee.com, 18 Oct. 2026 These productions focused on accessibility, particularly for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences, rather than overcoming language barriers. — New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026 Many pastors were migrants themselves and shared from the pulpit their stories of overcoming adversity. — Johanna Bard Richlin, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026 But Gordon has emerged as Miami’s clear lead back, capable of overcoming a poor situation. — Dalton Del Don, New York Times, 15 Oct. 2026 Even with a more favorable national environment for Democrats, overcoming those advantages would be difficult. — Charlotte Observer, 15 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overcoming
  1. defeating
  2. overwhelming
  3. mastering
  4. devastating
  5. conquering
  6. crushing
  7. beating
  8. taking
Verb
  • Fernandes points out the prevalence of tactical voting — when voters abandon their preferred candidate for one with a better chance of winning or defeating a rival — as an explanation for the first-round surprise in early October.
    — Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Eisenkot argued that Israel needed to concentrate its military resources on defeating Hamas in the south before embarking on another major conflict.
    — Eric Cortellessa, Time, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of defeating
Verb
  • The Arlington Heights Yellow Jackets (8-0, 4-0 District 4 5A-1) continued their dominant season Thursday night, overwhelming the Trimble Tech Bulldogs (4-3, 2-2 District 4 5A-1) 72-0 to remain undefeated.
    — Aliza Acuna, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Western and workwear references ran through the lineup without overwhelming its sporty foundation.
    — Footwear News, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of overwhelming
Verb
  • Making a cup of coffee can be as simple as popping a pod into a machine or as complex as mastering a high-tech espresso machine.
    — Randi Gollin, Martha Stewart, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Ward went on to join Ohio’s BalletMet and North Carolina Dance Theatre, mastering classical and neoclassical styles until his heart demanded a move beyond those orthodoxies.
    — Guillermo Perez, Miami Herald, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of mastering
Verb
  • The earthquake comes less than two months after a border region of Nepal and Tibet was struck by devastating flash flooding that left hundreds of people dead and destroyed several communities.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Sudan’s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been fighting since April 2023, devastating large parts of the country and threatening stability along its borders.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of devastating
Verb
  • Marsh argued conquering the global market means knowing differences between international markets.
    — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Before conquering Hollywood, Ali played Division I basketball (standing at six feet four) and released rap albums under the name Prince Ali.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of conquering
Verb
  • That album, like the Dio Sabbath classics before it, was fine-tuned for metalhead appreciation, thick with crushing riffs and dramatic vocals.
    — Brad Sanders, Pitchfork, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Elsewhere, Leipzig bounced back from heavy defeats against Bayern Munich and Real Madrid by crushing Elversberg 4-0.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of crushing
Verb
  • Meanwhile, Eisenkot’s bloc, which consists of right-wing, centrist and left-wing parties, would get 54 seats, beating Netanyahu while still falling short of a clear victory.
    — Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The Chicago Bears were 8-0 for the first time since 1942, after beating the Minnesota Vikings 27-9 at Soldier Field.
    — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of beating
Verb
  • Her hours used to be filled with calls, note-taking and lengthy card disclosures.
    — Lindsay Dodgson, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Dallas Mavericks star Cooper Flagg exited Friday night's game against the Indiana Pacers with an apparent shoulder injury after taking a hard foul while attempting a layup.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of taking

Browse Nearby Words

overcomes
overcoming
overcommit
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Overcoming.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overcoming. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of grotesque

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All