overreact
verb
over·re·act
ˌō-vər-rē-ˈakt 
overreacted; overreacting
: to react to something too strongly : to respond to something with too strong an emotion or with unnecessary or excessive action
I was furious and yelled at him. He told me I was overreacting and to "chillax."—
Ben Stein
Ben SteinThe world isn't coming to an end. You shouldn't overreact to the negative news.—Adam Bryant
Adam BryantSome of his animals had become apprehensive and twitchy, overreacting to sound or touch …—Mark Caldwell
Mark CaldwellBut the military police overreacted, using tear gas, rubber bullets and excessive force in front of news cameras that spread the images countrywide.—Grant Wahl
Grant Wahl… the poisonous surfeit of hormones produced by the overreacting immune system.—Shannon Brownlee
Shannon BrownleeSometimes companies in a little bit of trouble are the best investments because the market has overreacted.—Orson C. Clay
Orson C. Clay
overreaction
noun
plural overreactions
… he had said almost angrily that he couldn't tell her anything without eliciting a huge overreaction.
—Ann Beattie
Ann Beattie
This response is an overreaction by your immune system to an otherwise harmless substance, such as pollen or pet dander.
—Medical Clinic Health Letter
Medical Clinic Health Letter
Examples of overreact in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Your initial impressions may not correspond to reality, as our brains often overreact at first.
—Erica Yanney, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
Game 5 wasn’t 10 minutes old and the Stars trailed 3-0, coach Pete DeBoer overreacted and pulled his All-Star goalie.
—Mac Engel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 May 2025
Users in the comments widely agreed that the group of friends was overreacting, and the woman wasn't wrong.
—Rachel Raposas, People.com, 30 May 2025
The Tigers remain 7-3 in their last 10 games, so the team can't overreact to Thursday night's setback.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for overreact
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Erica Yanney, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
Game 5 wasn’t 10 minutes old and the Stars trailed 3-0, coach Pete DeBoer overreacted and pulled his All-Star goalie.
—Mac Engel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 May 2025
Users in the comments widely agreed that the group of friends was overreacting, and the woman wasn't wrong.
—Rachel Raposas, People.com, 30 May 2025
The Tigers remain 7-3 in their last 10 games, so the team can't overreact to Thursday night's setback.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for overreact
Cite this Entry
“Overreact.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overreact. Accessed 9 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
overreact
intransitive verb
over·re·act
ˌō-və(r)-rē-ˈakt
: to react excessively or too strongly
the body's immune system overreacts to the endotoxin—Tina Adler
Tina AdlerLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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