over·flow
ˌō-vər-ˈflō 
overflowed; overflowing; overflows
1
: to cover with or as if with water : inundate
2
: to flow over the brim of
3
: to cause to overflow
1
: to flow over bounds
2
: to fill a space to capacity and spread beyond its limits
the crowd overflowed into the street
over·flow
ˈō-vər-ˌflō
1
: a flowing over : inundation
2
: something that flows over : surplus
3
: an outlet or receptacle for surplus liquid
Synonyms
Examples of overflow in a Sentence
Verb
The river overflowed its banks.
The creek overflows every spring.
The water in the tub overflowed.
Books and papers overflowed his desk.
The paragraph overflowed the page.
Noun
a great overflow of water from the heavy rains swept mud and silt down onto the highway
an overflow of help actually made the job more complicated
Recent Examples on the Web
Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 13 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, emergency rooms downstairs overflow with patients, nearly all of whom will be sent back on the streets.
—Alex Barnard, The Mercury News, 10 Apr. 2024
The Seine overflows its banks after heavy rainfall in Paris last week.
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 10 Apr. 2024
Taxi Driver overflows with grimy, nightmarish urban detail, and offers an understanding of some of the worst people in the world — radicalized by a strange combination of narcissism and powerlessness — but never quite empathizes with them.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 9 Mar. 2024
Their 2018 debut New Bois overflows with quirky genre hallmarks including cartoonish auto-tune and Nextel chirps, and even a couple of features from Polimá Westcoast.
—Richard Villegas, Rolling Stone, 1 Apr. 2024
The batter expands rapidly and will overflow from the mixing bowl, leaving your counter a mess.
—Jessica Furniss, Southern Living, 30 Mar. 2024
Right now, Amazon’s Easter Shop is overflowing with Easter basket fillers for kids and adults — and our favorite goodies ring in at under $10.
—Isabel Garcia, Peoplemag, 24 Mar. 2024
Wander through the Harbert Antique Mall, where a back corner overflows with bolts of vintage fabric, and Sawyer Antique Mall for, perhaps, a miniature wood cow.
—Alex Beggs, Bon Appétit, 21 Mar. 2024
Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Mar. 2024
To that, Stump just pointed to the overflow Friday night crowd, then told one of her favorite anecdotes.
—Sam McManis, Sacramento Bee, 25 Jan. 2024
Of the 624 companies that pitched at the four-day conference, the biggest overflow crowd may have belonged to Nvidia, which unlike the others isn't a health care company.
—Molly Castle Work and Arthur Allen, CBS News, 23 Jan. 2024
The area of the overflow is not accessible to the public, though the Little Patuxent, which flooded earlier that day, eventually flows into the Chesapeake Bay.
—Dillon Mullan, Baltimore Sun, 14 Jan. 2024
This kind of sharing overflows into their one-on-one conversations with each other throughout the week.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024
The tree removal is part of an effort to clean up sewage overflows from the Pleasant Run waterway that runs through the park.
—Sarah Bowman, The Indianapolis Star, 22 Feb. 2024
Curbside valet is $25 a day and overflow is $10 per day.
—Vinod Sreeharsha, Miami Herald, 9 Feb. 2024
Meanwhile, an overflow shelter, meant to provide beds during the COVID-19 pandemic, ramped down.
—Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 27 Jan. 2024
Verb
Chappell Roan hadn’t yet hit the stage and the Gobi tent was already overflowing with gays and girlies.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 13 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, emergency rooms downstairs overflow with patients, nearly all of whom will be sent back on the streets.
—Alex Barnard, The Mercury News, 10 Apr. 2024
The Seine overflows its banks after heavy rainfall in Paris last week.
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 10 Apr. 2024
Taxi Driver overflows with grimy, nightmarish urban detail, and offers an understanding of some of the worst people in the world — radicalized by a strange combination of narcissism and powerlessness — but never quite empathizes with them.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 9 Mar. 2024
Their 2018 debut New Bois overflows with quirky genre hallmarks including cartoonish auto-tune and Nextel chirps, and even a couple of features from Polimá Westcoast.
—Richard Villegas, Rolling Stone, 1 Apr. 2024
The batter expands rapidly and will overflow from the mixing bowl, leaving your counter a mess.
—Jessica Furniss, Southern Living, 30 Mar. 2024
Right now, Amazon’s Easter Shop is overflowing with Easter basket fillers for kids and adults — and our favorite goodies ring in at under $10.
—Isabel Garcia, Peoplemag, 24 Mar. 2024
Wander through the Harbert Antique Mall, where a back corner overflows with bolts of vintage fabric, and Sawyer Antique Mall for, perhaps, a miniature wood cow.
—Alex Beggs, Bon Appétit, 21 Mar. 2024
Noun
Scripps has said that the move is simply about handling the overflow of Mercy Chula Vista’s very-busy emergency department while also noting that its maternity unit in Hillcrest has run at less than its full capacity, leaving room for an influx of South Bay patients.
—Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Mar. 2024
To that, Stump just pointed to the overflow Friday night crowd, then told one of her favorite anecdotes.
—Sam McManis, Sacramento Bee, 25 Jan. 2024
Of the 624 companies that pitched at the four-day conference, the biggest overflow crowd may have belonged to Nvidia, which unlike the others isn't a health care company.
—Molly Castle Work and Arthur Allen, CBS News, 23 Jan. 2024
The area of the overflow is not accessible to the public, though the Little Patuxent, which flooded earlier that day, eventually flows into the Chesapeake Bay.
—Dillon Mullan, Baltimore Sun, 14 Jan. 2024
This kind of sharing overflows into their one-on-one conversations with each other throughout the week.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024
The tree removal is part of an effort to clean up sewage overflows from the Pleasant Run waterway that runs through the park.
—Sarah Bowman, The Indianapolis Star, 22 Feb. 2024
Curbside valet is $25 a day and overflow is $10 per day.
—Vinod Sreeharsha, Miami Herald, 9 Feb. 2024
Meanwhile, an overflow shelter, meant to provide beds during the COVID-19 pandemic, ramped down.
—Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 27 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'overflow.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Noun
1568, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of overflow was
before the 12th century
Dictionary Entries Near overflow
Cite this Entry
“Overflow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overflow. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
overflow
1 of 2 verb
over·flow
ˌō-vər-ˈflō
1
: to cover with or as if with water : inundate
2
: to flow over the brim or top of
the river overflowed its banks
3
: to flow over bounds
the creek overflows every spring
4
: to fill a space up and spread beyond its limits
the paragraph overflowed the page
overflow
2 of 2 noun
over·flow
ˈō-vər-ˌflō
Medical Definition
overflow
noun
over·flow
ˈō-vər-ˌflō
: an excessive flow or amount
More from Merriam-Webster on overflow
Nglish: Translation of overflow for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of overflow for Arabic Speakers
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