What does overwhelm mean?
Word: Overwhelm
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Overwhelm means to affect someone so strongly that they hardly know how to react.
Synonyms: overpower, stagger
How do you spell overwhelm?
Syllables: o - ver - whelm
Tricky part: The h after the w is easy to drop, because most speakers do not sound it, and pupils write overwelm.
Watch out for: overwelm, overhelm, overwhelme
Memory tip: List it with what, when and why: the same opening sound, the same two letters.
Overwhelm in a sentence
Example 1: The kindness of strangers can overwhelm you on a bad day.
Example 2: Too many new rules at once may overwhelm the youngest pupils.
Example 3: The beauty of the valley in full bloom seemed to overwhelm the whole group.
Fun Fact
Some six hundred years ago, to overwhelm something was to turn it upside down or bury it, much as a great wave might. Only later did the word come to describe feelings as well.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
ov_rwh_lm
a) a, e
b) e, e
c) e, i
d) o, e
Show answer
b) e, e. Both gaps hold a plain e, one in each half of the word.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
The cards, flowers and phone calls that arrived from former pupils on her last day at school were enough to overwhellm the quiet old teacher from Shillong.
a) overwhellm
b) quiet
c) former
d) flowers
Show answer
a) overwhellm. The word ends in a single l before the m, as elm does.
Mingle-Mangle
Unscramble the jumbled word in the sentence and choose the correct word:
The sheer size of the Himalayas can veorhlwme a first-time visitor.
a) overhaul
b) overlook
c) overwhelm
d) overheat
Show answer
c) overwhelm. Overheat, overhaul and overlook have no w or m, so the jumble cannot make them.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word overwhelm as used in the sentence:
The number of entries for the art contest threatened to overwhelm the small team of judges.
a) soothe
b) amuse
c) delay
d) swamp
Show answer
d) swamp. To swamp is to give someone more than they can deal with, which is what the entries might do.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A surprise party left Dadi overwhelmed. How did she probably look?
a) lost for words, with tears of joy
b) sleepy, and ready to go to bed
c) bored, and checking the time
d) cross about the mess in the room
Show answer
a) lost for words, with tears of joy
2. The plan was passed by an overwhelming ____.
a) majority
b) distance
c) height
d) surface
Show answer
a) majority
