Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Definitions

overkill

[oh-ver-kil] / ˈoʊ vərˌkɪl /






















Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The overkill hits its nadir when the Bride repeatedly wails the survivors’ hashtag, “Me too!”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 4, 2026

For me, it happens often enough that this approach feels less like overkill and more like mercy.

From Salon • Jan. 27, 2026

But I would agree with Williams that it was probably overkill.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 16, 2026

It feels a bit like overkill if you’re just a little sleepy.

From Slate • Nov. 26, 2025

Defenders of the overkill hypothesis reply: you would hardly expect to find kill sites if the extermination was completed very quickly and long ago, such as within a few millennia some 40,000 years ago.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond




Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Look it up. Learn it forever.

Remember "overkill" for good with VocabTrainer. Expand your vocabulary effortlessly with personalized learning tools that adapt to your goals.

Take me to Vocabulary.com