overly
Part of speech: adv
Morphological type: derivation
Etymology: Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *úp
Proto-Indo-European *-er
Proto-Indo-European *upér
Proto-Germanic *uber
Proto-West Germanic *obar
Old English ofer
Middle English over
English over
Proto-Indo-European *leyg-der.
Proto-Germanic *līkąder.
Proto-Germanic *-līkaz
Proto-Germanic *-ê
Proto-Germanic *-līkê
Proto-West Germanic *-līkē
Old English -līċe
Middle English -ly
English -ly
English overly
From over + -ly (adverbial suffix).
Inflected forms:
Senses:
gloss: To an excessive degree.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
proscribed
sometimes
examples: Parents can be overly protective of their children.
[…] considering the circumstances of my situation, I saw it would not do for me to look out for an overly young woman, nor yet would it do for one of my ways to take an elderly maiden, ladies of that sort being liable to possess strong-set particularities.
It’s nothing short of wonderful how she’s improved these three years, but especially in looks. She’s a real pretty girl got to be, though I can’t say I’m overly partial to that pale, big-eyed style myself.
Your race is overly sentimental; it distorts your judgment.
This means, at times, long and perhaps overly discursive discussions of other taxa.
And this is where the larger problem lies: when states try to enforce impossible bans, everyone loses. 3D printing farragoes have all the hallmarks of the absolute worst kind of ineffectual ban: one which encourages overly draconian laws that carry huge side effects, and that ultimately to have little to no effect.
gloss: To a high degree; very.
pos: adv
tags: negative
not-comparable
usually
examples: I'm not overly enthusiastic about meeting him.
gloss: Superficially.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
obsolete
examples: 1566, Thomas Blundeville, The Fower Chiefyst Offices Belongyng to Horsemanshippe, London, “The true Arte of Paring, and shooyng all maner of Houes together […] ,” Chapter 5,
[…] let him not touche the quarters nor the heeles at al, vnlesse it be to make the seat of the shoe playne, & let that be done so superficially or ouerly as maye be, so shall the houes remayne alwayes strong.
These kinds of reproofes, not vnfitly may be compared to hotte or hastie healing salues, which drawe a faire skinne ouer a fowle wound; which because it is not soundly cured from the bottome, but ouerly healed vp, doth afterward apostemate or fistulate, and becommeth more dangerous and desperate then euer before.
1678, George Mackenzie, The Laws and Customes of Scotland, in Matters Criminal, Edinburgh, Part 1, “Some Crimes punished amongst the Romans, which are not directly in use with us,” p. 347,
[…] I resolved here to touch overly even those crimes which are little considered among us, not only that we might thereby know the genius of that wise Nation; but that we may consider how far it were fit to renew amongst us these excellent Laws.
gloss: Carelessly, without due attention.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
obsolete
examples: […] you shall finde this, that all remissenesse, when a man doth a thing remissely, and ouerly, and perfunctorily, it argues alway a diuided intention, it is an argument that the whole minde is not set on it, but that the intention is distracted, and bestowed on other things:
If you expect the Poor should work cheaper, and not perform their Work slighter and more overly, as we call it, and superficially, you expect what is not in the Nature of the Thing.
gloss: With a sense of superiority, haughtily.
pos: adv
tags: not-comparable
obsolete
examples: The third [vice] is Arrogancie, and the fourth Pride, two vices neer a kinne, Cosen germans […] when men shall arrogate much unto themselves; looking overly and superciliously upon others.
Translations: