overcontrol

O1V4E1R1C3O1N1T1R1O1L1

verb

To control to too great a degree.

Scrabble 16
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Meanings

verbovercontrol (third-person singular simple present overcontrols, present participle overcontrolling, simple past and past participle overcontrolled)

present singular third person overcontrols · participle present overcontrolling · participle past overcontrolled · past overcontrolled

  1. transitiveTo control to too great a degree.

    She’s not fancy or overcontrolled: she sounds relaxed but alert, and a slight nasal flatness in her voice humanizes her, makes her touch the ground.

    2007 January 8, The New York Times, “New CDs”, in New York Times
nounovercontrol (uncountable)
  1. uncountableExcessive control.

    After a stressful event, the histrionic patient often manifests swings from rigid overcontrol to uncontrolled intrusions and emotional repetition.

    2011, Mardi Jon Horowitz, Stress Response Syndromes

Origin

From over- + control.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

overcontrol. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/overcontrol

MLA

“overcontrol.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/overcontrol. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “overcontrol,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/overcontrol.

Source: overcontrol on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.