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overweening

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overweening¹

  • /əʊvəˈwiːnɪŋ/ UK
  • /oʊvɚˈwinɪŋ/ US

Rhymes with -iːnɪŋ

Where it comes from

From Middle English overweninge, equivalent to overween + -ing. Cognate with obsolete Dutch overwanig, overwaand (“presumptuous; cocky; conceited”).

adjective more overweening · most overweening · over-weening

  1. Unduly confident; (sometimes also) arrogant. overweening pride

    Similar: overconfident, presumptuous, conceited, airy, arrogant, chesty, authoritarian, biggity, big-headed, blustery, turgescent, boastful · Opposite: underconfident, unconfident, uncertain, unsure, timid

  2. Exaggerated, excessive. The idea that an overweening federal government is a threat to both freedom and equality (not to mention prosperity) goes back to Jefferson, James Madison, Patrick Henry and some other fairly respectable personages.

    Similar: immoderate, unrestrained, devilish, excessive, horrendous, de trop, extravagant, extreme, intemperate, lavish, nimious, obscene · Opposite: moderate, appropriate, due, apropos

overweening²

  • /əʊvəˈwiːnɪŋ/ UK
  • /oʊvɚˈwinɪŋ/ US

Rhymes with -iːnɪŋ

Where it comes from

From Middle English overweninge, equivalent to overween + -ing.

noun overweenings · over-weening

  1. archaic, countable, uncountable An excessively high opinion of oneself or one’s abilities; presumption, arrogance. Let us suppresse this over-weening [translating cuider], the first foundation of the tyrannie of the wicked spirit[…].

overweening³

  • /əʊvəˈwiːnɪŋ/ UK
  • /oʊvɚˈwinɪŋ/ US

Rhymes with -iːnɪŋ

Where it comes from

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

verb over-weening

  1. gerund, participle, present present participle and gerund of overween

Translations

Every language

adj over-confident

Españolprepotente
Françaisconfiant, arrogant
Deutschüberheblich, eingebildet, anmaßend, arrogant
Русскийсамонаде́янный samonadéjannyj

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MLA

"overweening." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/overweening. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

overweening. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/overweening

Chicago

"overweening." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/overweening.

BibTeX
@misc{overweening_2026,
  title = {overweening},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/overweening},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}