overwhelms

verb

present tense third-person singular of overwhelm
1
as in overcomes
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress just the thought of how much work there is to do overwhelms me

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in engulfs
to cover with a flood that spring the massive runoff from melting snows overwhelmed the valley

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 overwhelms The tests could easily do the opposite, as people with results suggesting cancer require follow-up testing that overwhelms our healthcare system, potentially delaying diagnoses for people with cancer. — Torie Bosch, STAT, 24 Oct. 2026 Histamine intolerance is when histamine from food overwhelms the body’s ability to break it down, Hwang explained. — Lauren Finney Harden, AJC.com, 20 Oct. 2026 In 90 percent of instances, if a team overwhelms another in the trenches on both sides of the ball, that team wins the game handily. — Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Sep. 2026 Revenue that overwhelms delivery teams, adds friction for customers or depends on heroic effort is not the same as scalable growth. — Tim Dowd, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2026 Spray the areas around your home where wasps have gathered in the past with peppermint essential oil spray, which Wong says overwhelms their sensory receptors and naturally repels them. — Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 3 Sep. 2026 And yet, in Yoon’s hands, a character’s suffering never overwhelms their capacity for tenderness. — Rachel Vorona Cote, The Atlantic, 30 July 2026 Furniture that is too large for a room overwhelms it; ensure your furniture is appropriate for your room size and the other pieces in that room. — Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 11 July 2026 Trends break, sentiment changes and, sometimes, market volatility overwhelms even the cleanest chart formations. — Josh Brown,sean Russo, CNBC, 29 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overwhelms
  1. overcomes
  2. floods
  3. devastates
  4. drowns
  5. oppresses
Verb
  • Roger overcomes stage-fright to shine in the school performance.
    — Liz Rosenberg, The Conversation, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Airscope overcomes this limitation by delivering a large field of view in a design light enough for animals to wear freely.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of overcomes
Verb
  • The rabbit does not control the rain that floods its burrow or the drought that kills its food.
    — Chris Lee, ArsTechnica, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The camera moves constantly and visual information — lights, split screens, colors, sounds, movement — floods the viewer.
    — William Earl, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of floods
Verb
  • As climate chaos causes oceans to swallow coastlands, and as surging water displaces and devastates communities, social survival will demand that people find ways to live and work with – and on – the water.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The urban planner and former professor also knows what happens next after a powerful earthquake devastates whole communities.
    — Luis Giraldo, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of devastates
Verb
  • However, after Mitt drowns himself in the midst of a terminal illness, Jay goes diving in search of his father’s remains.
    — Brenna Ehrlich, Rolling Stone, 18 Oct. 2026
  • As the male assassin finds her and nearly drowns her in a lake, River catches up to the scene in time to save her, and the episode shifts to accommodate the romantic chemistry that’s been simmering between them since the series premiere.
    — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of drowns
Verb
  • Tromplz maps the violence that oppresses Venezuelans and exposes the displacement of Venezuelan migrants.
    — Katherine Brodsky, Variety, 18 Sep. 2026
  • It is governed by a brutal regime that oppresses its people and is an enemy to the United States.
    — The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 5 Mar. 2026
Definition of oppresses

Browse Nearby Words

overwhelming
overwhelms
over with
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Cite this Entry

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

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