Meaning & use
overbearing
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Meanings
adjectivecomparabledisapproving
Trying to control other people in a bossy, forceful way that feels unpleasant.
Grammar: Describes a person or behavior, before or after a verb: an overbearing boss; he is overbearing.
Patterns
- an overbearing person
- overbearing toward someone
Her overbearing manager checked every email she wrote.
He was so overbearing that his team stopped sharing ideas.
An overbearing parent can make a child afraid to make decisions.
adjectivebefore a nounformal
Stronger or more important than anything else, so that it overpowers other things.
Grammar: Mostly literary or formal; used with nouns like need or force.
Patterns
- an overbearing need
- overbearing power
He felt an overbearing need to prove himself.
The overbearing smell of perfume filled the elevator.
Word forms
| comparative | more overbearing |
|---|---|
| superlative | most overbearing |
Common combinations
- overbearing manner
- His overbearing manner annoyed the staff.
- overbearing boss
- An overbearing boss rarely keeps good workers for long.
- overbearing mother
- She grew up with an overbearing mother who planned her days.
- overbearing attitude
- Her overbearing attitude silenced the meeting.
- overbearing tone
- He spoke in an overbearing tone that made people uneasy.
Synonyms and how they differ
- domineering
- Domineering stresses a person who tries to dominate others, and is nearly equal to overbearing but a little stronger.
- bossy
- Bossy is informal and often used for children or mild situations, while overbearing sounds more serious.
- high-handed
- High-handed focuses on acting without asking others, while overbearing includes pressing people with a forceful manner.
- assertive
- Assertive is usually positive and means confident without bullying, which overbearing is not.
Opposites
Word family
- overbear verb
- to overpower or dominate
- overbearingly adverb
- in a domineering way
- bear verb
- to carry or endure
Commonly confused: overbearing or overwhelming? overbearing or overburdening?
overbearing vs overwhelming
Overwhelming describes something too large or strong to deal with, whereas overbearing describes a person who controls others in a forceful way.
overbearing vs overburdening
Overburdening means loading someone with too much work or responsibility, which is different from being bossy.
Practice
Employees disliked their ___ manager, who checked every detail and never trusted anyone's judgment.
Choose one answer.
Overbearing means bossy in a controlling, unpleasant way, which matches the manager's behavior. The other adjectives are positive or relaxed.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “overbearing”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.