overrestore means to impair (an old artwork, building, etc.) by restoring it too enthusiastically. It carries an Arena rating of 1549, earned across 83 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, overrestore ranks #379 of 17,138 for Most Incisive Words, #723 of 17,132 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #4,229 of 17,163 for Funniest Words, #4,480 of 17,151 for The Improbable.
Why “overrestore” is a great word
OVERRESTORE — [Verb] To impair an old artwork, building, or artifact by restoring it with excessive zeal, often stripping away its accrued historical character or authentic patina. From the English prefix over- ("excessively") + restore (from Middle English restoren, from Old French restorer, from Latin restaurare "to renew, rebuild"). Unlike "restore," which implies a meticulous return to an authentic state, or "renovate," which accepts alteration for modern utility, to overrestore is to commit a zealous, well-meant violence. It is the scrubbed-bland face of a medieval saint, the ancient oak beam planed to a sterile shine, and the mossy garden wall replaced with mortared bricks of a uniform, jarring orange—a pristine forgery of history, where the most earnest love becomes the most complete erasure.
Etymology
From over- + restore.
verb
- To impair (an old artwork, building, etc.) by restoring it too enthusiastically.e.g.““We didn’t want to overrestore it,” Mr. Allen said.” — 2008 June 14, David W. Dunlap, “A Father’s Tribute to Three Dead Daughters Is Restored”, in New York Times:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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