oversell

verb

over·​sell ˌō-vər-ˈsel How to pronounce oversell (audio)
oversold ˌō-vər-ˈsōld How to pronounce oversell (audio) ; overselling

transitive verb

1
a
: to sell too much or too many to
b
: to sell too much or too many of
2
: to make excessive claims for
oversell noun

Examples of oversell in a Sentence

Hotels routinely oversell their rooms, expecting a small percentage of no-shows. Don't oversell yourself in the job interview. The salesman oversold the features on the new model.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
To add historical context about what this oversold reading means — and more importantly, how to approach this recent market sell-off — our friends at Marketedge, creators of the Oscillator, put together a few interesting facts. Jeff Marks, CNBC, 20 Dec. 2024 The event has oversold his role in the evening’s program. Erin Somers, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024 Robert Weaver, administrator of the Housing and Home Finance Agency, in a lecture at Harvard in April of 1965 stated that initial advocates of urban renewal had 'oversold its potential to local governments. Steve Wiser, The Courier-Journal, 1 May 2024 But the report also says that health officials and the Biden administration oversold the power of the vaccines to prevent transmission or infection, possibly contributing to the public’s lack of trust in Covid shots and in vaccines overall. Katherine Dillinger, CNN, 2 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for oversell 

Word History

First Known Use

1576, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of oversell was in 1576

Dictionary Entries Near oversell

Cite this Entry

“Oversell.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oversell. Accessed 5 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

oversell

verb
over·​sell ˌō-vər-ˈsel How to pronounce oversell (audio)
oversold -ˈsōld How to pronounce oversell (audio) ; overselling
: to sell too much to or of

More from Merriam-Webster on oversell

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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