Examples 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 overact
In regard to overacting, Pacino addresses it on a case-by-case basis: Some movies call for it, like Scarface.
—
Chris Stanton, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2024
The performances seems inspired by the over-the-top techniques of actors who tried to do too much when sound finally came to films, but were used to overacting.
—Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 25 Sep. 2024
Their turns are driven to cartoonish overacting in great part by the words they’ve been asked to say in English and in angry tones.
—Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 30 Aug. 2024
Meanwhile, Greenblatt’s playfully mischievous demeanor as Tina often reads as overacting.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug. 2024
The welcome lack of overacting is evident throughout the show.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 22 Apr. 2024
Sukowa seems to have been encouraged to overact, perhaps overcompensating for the film’s general listlessness.
—Pat Padua, Washington Post, 7 June 2023
If the blood levels are too high, the immune system can overact, causing pain, swelling and fatigue — symptoms often seen with Lyme disease.
—Caroline Hopkins, NBC News, 14 May 2023
The standout story features the wily, overacting Minna Nordstrom, née Vera Prebble, who secures herself a star contract (and forces the merger of several studios) by blackmailing every producer with a secret liquor stash.
—Boris Kachka, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overact
Verb
-
The commission notes the abject shortcomings of anti-money-laundering measures but badly underplay the enduring capacities of wealthy trafficking organizations to defy counternarcotics efforts.Richard Feinberg, Foreign Affairs, 20 Apr. 2021
-
The contributors underplay the overwhelming pressures of population growth and rapid urbanization in some parts of Latin America, as well as the growing aspirations of middle classes that current growth rates will not soon satisfy.Richard Feinberg, Foreign Affairs, 11 Feb. 2020
Verb
-
But the president-elect's favors are fickle, and there are already signs that Musk may be overplaying his hand.Scott Rosenberg, Axios, 19 Nov. 2024
-
The president believed that the media, and political rivals such as Trump, were overplaying the threat.Joe Klein, Foreign Affairs, 13 June 2017
Verb
-
The quick take is that a Trump administration, working with a Republican Congress, should be able to enact policies that will foster a new burst of economic growth.Jill Schlesinger, The Mercury News, 19 Nov. 2024
-
The act required that before any tax or fee is enacted, politicians must clearly outline how revenues would be spent.K. Lloyd Billingsley, Orange County Register, 11 Nov. 2024
Verb
-
The Police Department contends the gunman acted out of fear and self-defense, the statement says, which led him to pull the trigger.Bianca Moreno-Paz, Austin American-Statesman, 22 Nov. 2024
-
The Selzer poll has been viewed as evidence that pollsters calling the race a dead heat have been acting out of a desire to seek safety in numbers following the shock 2016 election result that failed to spot latent support for Trump.Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
-
Do not imitate Eeyore in Winnie the Pooh who discerned something negative about everything.Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 27 Nov. 2024
-
One document included a business deck orchestrated by a group of political operatives called the American Patriots Project (APP) to imitate No Labels' website with the purchase of the NoLabels.com domain as well as Google search ads.Kelsey Walsh, ABC News, 27 Nov. 2024
Verb
-
Today, Margaret would be playacting her own massacre in active shooter drills at school.Petula Dvorak, Washington Post, 1 May 2023
-
Trump’s modus, as ever, was to playact; his game has always been improv.Joe Klein, Washington Post, 12 Jan. 2023
Verb
-
The best-selling novel (and Apple TV+ series) Lessons in Chemistry recently dramatized the often virulent misogyny that existed in scientific settings; Joy looks at a subtler dynamic, in which the contributions that women played in scientific discovery was downplayed.Vogue, Vogue, 21 Nov. 2024
-
However, casting famous Broadway actors and dramatizing the events onscreen feels bigger and riskier, especially over the course of ten hour-long episodes following Hernandez from his childhood to his death — especially with Ryan Murphy onboard as an executive producer.Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2024
Verb
-
Amorim and his team built replicas of Senna's cars from throughout his career, as well as dozens of other vintage-style vehicles, to mimic real races using professional drivers.Marco della Cava, USA TODAY, 29 Nov. 2024
-
The discovery opens up the potential for the creation of new drugs that would mimic the relaxed state common during breath work, meditation or yoga.Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 27 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near overact
Cite this Entry
“Overact.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overact. Accessed 4 Dec. 2024.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share