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OVERCOMPENSATE
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (verb)
Verb forms
Present simple: I / you / we / they overcompensate ... he / she / it overcompensates
Past simple: overcompensated
Past participle: overcompensated
-ing form: overcompensating
Sense 1
Meaning:
Make excessive corrections for fear of making an error
Synonyms:
over-correct; overcompensate
Classified under:
Verbs of political and social activities and events
Hypernyms (to "overcompensate" is one way to...):
compensate; correct; redress; right (make reparations or amends for)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Sense 2
Meaning:
Make up for shortcomings or a feeling of inferiority by exaggerating good qualities
Example:
he is compensating for being a bad father
Synonyms:
compensate; cover; overcompensate
Classified under:
Verbs of being, having, spatial relations
Hypernyms (to "overcompensate" is one way to...):
compensate; correct; counterbalance; even off; even out; even up; make up (adjust for)
Verb group:
cover; insure; underwrite (protect by insurance)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s something
Derivation:
overcompensation ((psychiatry) an attempt to overcome a real or imagined defect or unwanted trait by overly exaggerating its opposite)
