1
as in defeated
to achieve a victory over
the baseball team finally overcame their opponents in the 13th inning
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in overwhelmed
to subject to incapacitating emotional or mental stress
already under stress, she was overcome by news of a death in the family
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of overcame
Keldon Johnson had 27 points, Victor Wembanyama added 16 points and 14 rebounds, and the San Antonio Spurs overcame 38 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists from Luka Doncic to beat the Los Angeles Lakers 107-91 on Wednesday night.
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CBS News, 8 Jan. 2026
In 2017, for instance, prosecutors in Contra Costa overcame an insanity defense by William Shultz, who murdered a 9-year-old Discovery Bay boy during a sleepover and blamed it on a delusion about an impending World War III.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 8 Jan. 2026
In the quarterfinal, Ole Miss overcame a 21-12 deficit against Georgia, outscoring the Bulldogs 20-10 in the fourth quarter for a 39-34 win.
—Rohan Nadkarni, NBC news, 8 Jan. 2026
Despite the toy now being out of sight, scientists say most of the gifted dogs overcame this challenge and successfully learned the new labels.
—Briana Alvarado, ABC News, 8 Jan. 2026
In the first half, Rogers scored 20 of Little Rock Christian's 31 points, including 16 in the second quarter as the Lady Warriors (12-5) overcame an 18-13 deficit before tying the game at 22-22.
—Arkansas Online, 7 Jan. 2026
Minnesota was locked in defensively from the jump and overcame a slow shooting start to run away from the Heat in the second half.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 7 Jan. 2026
Tim overcame his fear of screwing up again and asked Lucy to move in.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 6 Jan. 2026
Mamdani overcame on the campaign trail to become NYC's next mayor.
—FOXNews.com, 5 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overcame
Verb
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The first turned a fourth-quarter fumble into a 59-yard score when Achane burst through a tired, and seemingly defeated Buffalo defensive front and outsprinted the Bills’ entire secondary to the end zone.—
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In nonplayoff action, Ben Chen rushed for 133 yards and two touchdowns as Westford Academy defeated Newton South, 33-13.—
Verb
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Those bold trunks of synapses, instead of the sleek connections most people have, mean that Kaylie can be overwhelmed by the flood of input coming her way.—
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Indiana overwhelmed Alabama 38-3 in the Rose Bowl as Mendoza passed for 192 yards and three touchdowns.—
Verb
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Jonathan Bailey has mastered the art of capturing hearts.—
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Most fans of the show have likely been bracing themselves to see how Hemsworth takes on a character Cavill has long mastered.—
Verb
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Though not every gallery has reopened since hurricanes devastated the island, the community brought back the Matlacha Art Walk in 2025.—
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There had been an influx of increasingly cataclysmal news out of Gaza, and Ben Hania made efforts to stay as informed as possible, but Hind’s innocent voice devastated her anew.—
Verb
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The museum has never shied away from the more problematic areas of British art history, including art made in countries that Englands conquered or colonized.—
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Silicon Valley grew convinced that other difficult tasks would soon be conquered.—
Verb
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Döpfner nearly bought the FT in 2015, before losing it to Nikkei, and took a controlling stake in Business Insider — at the top of the new media market — for $343 million.—
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With the win, Southern Miss (7-2, 5-0) took sole possession of first place in the Sun Belt Conference West Division standings.—
Verb
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Two teenage girls are charged with kidnapping a teenage boy after allegedly luring him into a basement and beating him for three hours in early November.—
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Josh Doan scored, Colten Ellis made 30 saves in his first game in a month and the Buffalo Sabres beat the New York Rangers 5-2 on Thursday night to give them 12 victories in their past 13 games.—
Verb
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By 1996, Joe broke through in commercial work and got into television.—
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Multiple King of Fire, which got its start as a food truck and expanded to a permanent space in uptown Charlotte, plans to open a 3,484-square-foot space at CrossRidge Center across the border in Indian Land, South Carolina.—
Cite this Entry
“Overcame.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overcame. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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