to overstep

Examples

• All

• Sometimes a patient may unknowingly overstep that line.

  Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943)

• But you overstep your bounds when you provide more than is strictly necessary.

  Fiction book (1998)

• - Did he overstep the line?

  Totsu (Redbird) (2020)

• And you did kind of overstep your bounds there.

  Cupids on Beacon Street (2021)

• Business should not feel the need to overstep its boundaries or take on responsibilities that belong to the state.

  Academic text (2008)

• At the same time, the government can easily overstep its bounds.

  Blog text (21)

• We need to make sure that the police do not overstep constitutional bounds.

  Lex Fridman

• You overstep your privileges in being a guest in Mrs. Herbert's house.

  The Draughtsman's Contract (1982)

• Effective influencers always enlist the support of their boss and are careful not to overstep the mark.

  Blog text (8)

• He realized he had overstepped his boundaries when he started making decisions without consulting his team.

Synonyms

E

to exceed

vsto overstep

255 4.1

To be greater than a set amount or beyond what people expect

covers going past limits in behaviour or acceptability rather than quantity

G

to go beyond

vsto overstep

201 3.6

To exceed a limit or what people expect

is more specifically about allowed or acceptable boundaries rather than general surpassing

G

to go too far

vsto overstep

201 4.2

Say or do something that is not acceptable and may hurt people

is the same crossing but stated as a general rule about limits

O

to overreach

vsto overstep

15 6.2

To go beyond what you are allowed to do

is broader and applies to any allowed or acceptable boundary

T

to transgress

vsto overstep

12 7.8

To do something that breaks a law, rule, or your idea of right and wrong

is similar but can be less formal and not necessarily illegal

S

to step over the line

vsto overstep

• Informal

10 5.0

Go beyond what people consider acceptable

focuses on going past limits in general rather than physical metaphor

O

to overrun

vsto overstep

4 5.3

Go past a limit or planned time

applies to going beyond social or allowed limits rather than physical overflow

O

to overstep the mark

vsto overstep

• UK

3 6.2

To behave in a way people think is not acceptable

is the general idea of going beyond allowed or acceptable limits

C

to cross the red line

vsto overstep

• Literature

1 6.3

To go past a limit people set and cause serious problems

means going beyond limits but without implying severe outcomes

T

to take too far

vsto overstep

1 5.3

To go beyond what is reasonable or acceptable

describes the same excess but without the sense of exaggeration

Phrasal Verbs

O

to overstep the mark

• UK

3 6.2

To behave in a way people think is not acceptable

How Serious

to violate

627 4.4

to transgress

12 7.8

to flout

12 7.9

to overstep

11 5.9

to bend the rules

12 4.9

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology