View synonyms for

overcompensate

[ oh-ver-kom-puhn-seyt ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

verb (used with object)

overcompensated, overcompensating.

to compensate or reward excessively; overpay:
Some stockholders feel the executives are being overcompensated and that bonuses should be reduced.

verb (used without object)

overcompensated, overcompensating.

to exhibit psychological overcompensation; strive to overcome a sense of inferiority through overt, opposite behavior:
The aggressive patient may be overcompensating, and be a profoundly shy person beneath the façade.

overcompensate

/ ˌəʊ��əˈ��ɒ��ɛ��ˌ��ɪ�� /

verb

to compensate (a person or thing) excessively
intr psychol to engage in overcompensation

Discover More

Derived Forms

ˌ�Ǳ��ˈ��ǳ��ˌ��ٴǰ��, adjective

Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of overcompensate¹

1760–70; over- + compensate; as term in psychology, perhaps back formation from overcompensation

Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The movie seems to recoil from its own hammering dramatics, with Bryce Dessner’s score toggling uneasily between jocular blues and dour, overcompensating strings.

From

“You don’t think he’s overcompensating do you?” a former GOP member of Congress asked me.

From

There's also a growing concern that India may be overcompensating in its efforts to flatter the US.

From

"I had money and had to keep myself occupied. I overcompensated but that's the way I dealt with it."

From

“For years, I internalized the idea that my brain was ‘wrong’ and that I had to work twice as hard, overcompensate and mask my symptoms to be taken seriously in professional spaces,” Colzie said.

From

overcommit overcompensation

Browse