OVERESTIMATE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does overestimate mean? 

• OVERESTIMATE (noun)
  The noun OVERESTIMATE has 2 senses:

1. an appraisal that is too high

2. a calculation that results in an estimate that is too high

  Familiarity information: OVERESTIMATE used as a noun is rare.

• OVERESTIMATE (verb)
  The verb OVERESTIMATE has 2 senses:

1. make too high an estimate of

2. assign too high a value to

  Familiarity information: OVERESTIMATE used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• OVERESTIMATE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An appraisal that is too high

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

overappraisal; overestimate; overestimation; overvaluation

Hypernyms ("overestimate" is a kind of...):

appraisal; estimate; estimation (a document appraising the value of something (as for insurance or taxation))

Derivation:

overestimate (make too high an estimate of)

overestimate (assign too high a value to)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A calculation that results in an estimate that is too high

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

overestimate; overestimation; overrating; overreckoning

Hypernyms ("overestimate" is a kind of...):

approximation; estimate; estimation; idea (an approximate calculation of quantity or degree or worth)

Derivation:

overestimate (assign too high a value to)

• OVERESTIMATE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they overestimate    ... he / she / it overestimates   
Past simple: overestimated   
Past participle: overestimated   
-ing form: overestimating   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Make too high an estimate of

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Synonyms:

overestimate; overrate

Context example:

He overestimated his own powers

Hypernyms (to "overestimate" is one way to...):

misjudge (judge incorrectly)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "overestimate"):

overcapitalise; overcapitalize (overestimate the market value of)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Antonym:

underestimate (make too low an estimate of)

Derivation:

overestimate (an appraisal that is too high)

overestimation (a calculation that results in an estimate that is too high)

overestimation (an appraisal that is too high)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Assign too high a value to

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Synonyms:

overestimate; overvalue

Context example:

You are overestimating the value of your old car

Hypernyms (to "overestimate" is one way to...):

value (fix or determine the value of; assign a value to)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Antonym:

underestimate (assign too low a value to)

Derivation:

overestimate (a calculation that results in an estimate that is too high)

overestimate; overestimation (an appraisal that is too high)

 Context examples 

Now researchers at MIT have found that these rates of collapse may be overestimated.

(Antarctic ice cliffs may not contribute to ice-sheet instability as much as predicted, National Science Foundation)

Rock core samples from a period of warming millions of years ago indicate that soils contributed to a rapid rise in atmospheric greenhouse gases and suggest that modern climate models may overestimate Earth's ability to mitigate future warming, according to an international team of scientists.

(Clues found on how soils may respond to climate change, National Science Foundation)

They measured the ME in different forms of almonds and the Atwater factors - traditionally, calorie values for foods are calculated using the Atwater system - overestimated the ME of whole raw, whole roasted, and chopped roasted almonds by 25 percent, 19 percent, and 17 percent, respectively.

(Going Nuts Over Calories, U.S. Department of Agriculture)

At this point, with results from only one galactic halo, the researchers cannot say whether the low density and low magnetic field strength they measured are unusual or if previous studies of galactic halos have overestimated these properties.

(Enigmatic radio burst illuminates a galaxy’s tranquil ​halo, ESO)