Adjective: overwhelming ,ow-vu(r)'wel-ming
- So strong as to be irresistible
"the temptation to despair may become overwhelming"; "an overwhelming majority";
- overpowering
- Very strong; urgently felt
"overwhelming joy";
- consuming
- Overcome by superior force
"The army overwhelmed the rebels after a long siege";
- overpower, overmaster
- Cover completely or make imperceptible
"The snow overwhelmed the landscape";
- submerge, drown
- Charge someone with too many tasks
"She was overwhelmed by paperwork";
- deluge, snow under [informal], overload
- Become filled with uncontrollable emotion or too much sensory input
"overwhelmed with grief";
- overpower, sweep over, overcome, overtake, engulf, ingulf [archaic]
See also: intense, irresistible, resistless
Type of: arouse, beat, beat out, burden, charge, cover, crush, elicit, enkindle [literary], evoke, kindle, lumber [Brit, informal], provoke, raise, saddle, shell [US], spread over, trounce, vanquish
Encyclopedia: Overwhelming