Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
🔊 To overemphasize 💪 To strain too much
to overstress

to overstress

1 5.8
To give something too much importance
  • verb
  • /ˌoʊvərˈstrɛs/
translation icon : sobrecargar
  • She tends to overstress the significance of minor details in her presentations.

I'm a coach that makes adjustments at halftime, doesn't overstress the game plan the week before.

Examples

  • Many teachers overstress the necessity of completing homework to succeed in class.

  • The historic importance of that fact cannot be overstressed.

    Academic text (2009)

  • So we overstressed the other side to kind of balance the conversation.

  • Shelley: Again, I cannot overstress the power of collaboration and community.

    Academic text (2013)

  • Another concern is that the presence of the beavers may overstress habitats vital to other species.

    Academic text (2001)

  • The significance of this cannot be overstressed.

    Academic text (1992)

  • It cannot be overstressed that the presence of God in the soul by grace is a real and substantial presence.

    Blog text (27)

  • The need to find appropriate and localized solutions, rather than imposing a uniform panacea, cannot be overstressed.

    Academic text (2003)

  • It cannot be overstressed that properly implemented enterprise PDM systems affect the entire enterprise, not merely one or two departments.

    Academic text (1998)

  • I cannot overstress the importance of taking breaks during long study sessions.

Synonyms

to overplay
vsto overstress
13 4.6

Make something seem more important or serious than it really is

places emphasis without necessarily adding exaggeration
to overemphasize
vsto overstress
8 5.5

Treat something as more important than it should be

is the same meaning but used as the main term in this entry
to overblow
vsto overstress
1 5.9

To make something seem more important or serious than it is

places extra emphasis but does not always inflate size or scale
to overweight
vsto overstress
1 6.7

Give too much importance to something when judging

is general excess emphasis, not only in evaluation situations
to overexaggerate
vsto overstress
1 5.4

To make something seem much worse or bigger than it is

emphasizes strongly without creating an exaggerated degree
to overindex on
vsto overstress
  • Jargon
8.9

To pay too much attention to one thing and ignore others

is broad excessive emphasis, not limited to one factor

Antonyms

to downplay
59 5.3

Show something as less important or serious than it is

to understate
18 5.2

To make something seem smaller or less important than it really is

How Emphasized

to overstress
1 5.8
to stress
183 3.1
to emphasize
  • US
397 3.7
to mention
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

overstress infinitive
overstressed past
overstressed past participle
overstressing present participle
overstresses third person singular

Morphology

overstress = stress (transparent) = over + stress

Formed by productive prefix 'over-' meaning 'excessively' + 'stress', so the meaning 'place excessive emphasis' is directly derived.

Etymology

Overstress is made of over- ('too much') and stress ('pressure' or 'strong attention'), and stress is the same idea as when you make a word stronger in speech. So to overstress an idea is to give it too much attention or importance.