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to overwhelm

to overwhelm

42 4.0
Defeat someone or something completely using greater force
  • verb
  • /ˌoʊvərˈwɛlm/
translation icon : derrotar
  • His Crow and Ankara scouts later said that Custer's men were overwhelmed by sheer numbers.
  • threaten to overwhelm
  • overwhelm the state

Iran striking Israel and overwhelming them with many days of attacks.

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Examples

  • Despite their valiant efforts, the Rangers are being overwhelmed by the fierce combatants.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • It would completely overwhelm our facilities.

  • You expect them to band together and overwhelm me?

  • Cell phone systems are soon overwhelmed and calls cannot go through.

  • In 2008, a remote Russian missile station was overwhelmed and held for a week.

  • Enraged French soldiers storm the breach and overwhelm the defenders.

  • Over the past four decades, the U.S. apparel industry has been overwhelmed by this global low-wage competition.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Syrian farmers and herders left their homes, swamped the cities, overwhelmed the infrastructure.

  • Without their natural control mechanisms, deer populations multiplied and threatened to overwhelm the canyon's fragile and limited resources.

    Academic text (2012)
  • The army launched a surprise attack to overwhelm the enemy forces.

Synonyms

to vanquish
vsto overwhelm
  • Formal
109 7.2

Beat someone or something completely in a conflict

does the same but stresses using greater strength or force to win
to overpower
vsto overwhelm
33 3.8

To use more strength to defeat and control a person or thing

is similar but highlights complete crushing rather than just control
to demolish
vsto overwhelm
8 3.7

Defeat an opponent completely and easily

shares total defeat but adds emphasis on physical or forceful overpowering
to steamroll
vsto overwhelm
8 6.5

Push a plan or idea through by ignoring other people's views

is similar but centers more on defeating an opponent by force
to prevail over
vsto overwhelm
8 5.8

To win against someone or something that tries to stop you

is narrower, stressing defeating by using superior physical strength or force
to blow out of the water
vsto overwhelm
  • Informal
4 6.8

To surprise and beat someone or something by a large amount

leans more on sheer strength or force to achieve that decisive win
to beat the stuffing out of
vsto overwhelm
  • Offensive
1 9.0

Hit someone many times until they are badly hurt

covers that violence but also includes nonphysical force as means to win
to overawe
vsto overwhelm
  • Formal
1 8.2

To make someone feel small or afraid by showing great power

instead relies on greater strength or direct force to cause defeat
to overmaster
vsto overwhelm
  • Literature
1 9.1

To defeat and control someone or something completely

focuses more on using greater force to achieve that subduing result
to steamroller
vsto overwhelm
  • Informal
1 7.4

To push a plan through while ignoring others' objections

matches that forceful method but highlights complete defeat as result
to spreadeagle
vsto overwhelm
  • Slang
9.7

To beat someone by a very large amount in a game or contest

is broader, stressing the use of superior force to secure defeat
to whomp on
vsto overwhelm
  • Informal
9.6

To hit, defeat, or work very hard at something using a lot of force

is similar but stresses greater overall strength to achieve defeat
to whelm
vsto overwhelm
9.9

To feel a very strong emotion that takes control of you

is more literal about defeating by superior strength or physical force
to overbeat
vsto overwhelm
4.9

Defeat an opponent easily in a game or contest

focuses less on margin and more on using greater force to win

How Defeated

to annihilate
  • NSFW
63 7.5
to crush
386 4.7
to overwhelm
42 4.0
to defeat
932 2.1
to beat
1.4

Surface Forms

overwhelm infinitive
overwhelmed past participle
overwhelming present participle
overwhelms third person singular

Morphology

overwhelm = whelm (transparent) = over + whelm

To defeat completely matches the idea of overwhelming as overpowering or engulfing, a direct semantic extension of the base.

Etymology

Overwhelm comes from over- meaning 'over' and the old word whelm meaning 'to cover' or 'push down', like a wave that knocks things over. So, to overwhelm an enemy is to overpower them completely, as if you push them down with greater force.