overwhelming
/ˌəʊvəˈwɛlmɪŋ/
overwhelming means overpowering, staggering, or irresistibly strong. It carries an Arena rating of 1469, earned across 2 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, overwhelming ranks #368 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #1,599 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #2,575 of 17,128 for Most Ponderous Words, #5,343 of 17,131 for Scariest Words.
overwhelming is pronounced /ˌəʊvəˈwɛlmɪŋ/.
Why “overwhelming” is a great word
So powerful, intense, or immense as to be overpowering or difficult to resist. From the verb 'overwhelm' (Middle English 'overwhelmen', from 'over-' + 'whelmen' meaning 'to overturn or engulf') + the suffix '-ing' forming the present participle and adjective. First recorded in adjective form 1565–75. Unlike 'underwhelming', which disappoints by its lack of force, or 'sweeping', which describes broad scope without the suffusing pressure, 'overwhelming' is the tyranny of sheer presence. It is the roar of a waterfall that drowns out all thought, the scent of jasmine so thick it borders on nausea, or the silent avalanche of grief that folds the body inward—the threshold where experience exceeds the architecture of the self.
Etymology
By surface analysis, overwhelm + -ing.
adj
- Overpowering, staggering, or irresistibly strong.e.g.“The vote was taken at once, and it was agreed by an overwhelming majority that rats were comrades.” — 1943 November – 1944 February (date written; published 1945 August 17), George Orwell [pseudonym; Eric Arthur Blair], Animal Farm […], London: Secker & Warburg, published May 1962, →OCLC:
- Very great or intense.
- Extreme.
noun
- A situation of being overwhelmed.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
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