overrate

verb

over·​rate ˈō-vər-ˌrāt 

overrated; overrating; overrates

transitive verb

: to rate or value (someone or something) too highly

By grossly overrating the danger from Communist agents inside the United States, the scaremongering of the House Un-American Activities Committee boosted the impression that Communist monsters in general were a mythical breed.

—Norman Davies

… they have an undersized shooting guard … who so vastly overrates his abilities that he declined management's five-year, $50 million extension offer.

—Jack McCallum

see also overrated

Synonyms

• overestimate
• overvalue

Examples of overrate in a Sentence

The coach tends to overrate the players on his own team.

I think the critics seriously overrated that movie.

Recent Examples on the Web

Sedona is many things, but in my book, overrated will never be one of them. —Erin Strout, Outside Online, 11 Nov. 2024

But sense is overrated with actors who can overcome all sensory competition through the singularity of their art. —Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2024

An objection that has been raised to Sharp’s general argument that attention in advertising is overrated is that the importance of attention may be higher in certain contexts, such as for high involvement products. —Charles Taylor, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2024

When hard work matters While job recruiters and billionaires alike tout the value of a strong work ethic, Randolph isn’t the only person who thinks hard work is, at times, overrated. —Megan Sauer, CNBC, 17 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

overrate

verb

over·​rate ˌō-və(r)-ˈrāt 

: to rate, value, or estimate too highly

a book that was overrated