Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To act (a dramatic role) with unnecessary exaggeration.
  • intransitive verb To exaggerate a role; overplay.
  • intransitive verb To act over and above what is required; overdo in acting.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To act so that the acting is overdone; act (a part) in an extravagant or unnatural manner.
  • To over-influence; act upon unduly.
  • To act more than is necessary.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • intransitive verb To act more than is necessary; to go to excess in action.
  • transitive verb To act or perform to excess; to exaggerate in acting.
  • transitive verb obsolete To act upon, or influence, unduly.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb performing arts To act in an exaggerated manner.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb exaggerate one's acting

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

over- +‎ act

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Examples

  • While his later tendency to overact is sometimes apparent, young pre-Star Trek Shatner is, dare I say, rather dashing.

    Incubus, the first movie in... Shatneranto? Shasperanto? 2008

  • While his later tendency to overact is sometimes apparent, young pre-Star Trek Shatner is, dare I say, rather dashing.

    Archive 2008-01-01 2008

  • While his later tendency to overact is sometimes apparent, young pre-Star Trek Shatner is, dare I say, rather dashing.

    Incubus, the first movie in... Shatneranto? Shasperanto? 2008

  • But Tarun (who directed Thimuru and Kaalai) has to learn not to overact, which is apparent in one of the scenes.

    unknown title 2009

  • But Tarun (who directed Thimuru and Kaalai) has to learn not to overact, which is apparent in one of the scenes.

    unknown title 2009

  • But Tarun (who directed Thimuru and Kaalai) has to learn not to overact, which is apparent in one of the scenes.

    unknown title 2009

  • OTTAWA - In deciding to cut overall government spending next year, Alberta appears to be moving in its own direction, ignoring advice Prime Minister Stephen Harper was dispensing to European nations last week to "overact" when it comes to stimulus spending.

    Top Stories - Google News 2009

  • In fact, he suggested political leaders were better to "overact" than "underact" when it comes to speeding stimulus money out the door.

    Top Stories - Google News 2009

  • "overact" to the above 2 percent target, and added that inflation will likely slow on budget cuts.

    British Pound Halts Two Day Decline as Retail Sales Tops Expectations - Yahoo! Finance 2010

  • "overact" the Carnival of Venice by requiring everyone to wear masks while walking down the street.

    MyLinkVault Newest Links 2009

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