as in to overwhelm
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress the student was overmastered by the stress of taking the college placement test and broke down crying

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 overmaster Passion is an intense, driving or overmastering feeling or conviction. Bird Brown, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, 8 Dec. 2019 Jesus’ Son is about the force of addiction and the only thing that can overmaster it: the ecstatic experience of God. Longreads, 17 June 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overmaster
Verb
  • Local permitting departments, overwhelmed by the demand, are struggling to keep up—delaying the return of many residents.
    Raja Krishnamoorthi, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Apr. 2025
  • Implementing spaced repetition techniques—revisiting challenging concepts at strategic intervals—further enhances retention without overwhelming your cognitive resources.
    Dr. Aviva Legatt, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Republicans will need Democratic support to overcome a 60-vote threshold to be able to pass the bill in the Senate.
    John Parkinson, ABC News, 10 Apr. 2025
  • Prior court decisions and guidance from the Department of Justice have set up hurdles to overcome before the court is forced to overpass a reporter’s privilege to protect sources.
    Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 9 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Amanda Seyfried stars in this limited series as a police officer investigating the murders of three young women in a Philadelphia neighborhood devastated by opioid addiction.
    Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025
  • The deadly storm devastated parts of Western North Carolina with storm damage and catastrophic flooding.
    Simone Jasper, Charlotte Observer, 14 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Overmaster.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overmaster. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.

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