Revised as of
23 Sept 2022
After that post on “Waist versus Waste“, the sound of overdoing it struck me. I mean, who wants to diet??
Besides, I’m sure you’re overdue for a nice thick chocolate shake . . . just don’t overdo it and have two!
And while you’re sucking that shake down, ponder this pair of heterographs.
Word Confusions…
…started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noir for you from either end.
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| Overdo | Overdue |
|---|---|
Thoracic Extension by medipics1066 is under the CC BY-2.0 license, via Flickr. — Looks more like he’s overdoing it! |
36 Weeks – New Years Eve Edition by Ish Frost under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Flickr. — She sure does look overdue. Poor mama! . . . betcha she had a boy. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Verb, intransitive & transitive
Third person present verb: overdoes |
Adjective |
| Verb, intransitive: To do too much
Verb, transitive:
To carry to excess or beyond the proper limit To overact (a part)
To overtax the strength of
|
Not having arrived, happened, or been done by the expected time
Having been needed for some time
More than sufficiently advanced, mature, or ready |
| Examples: | |
| Verb, intransitive: Exercise is good but you mustn’t overdo. Verb, transitive: She’s quite dramatic yet never overdone. I’d simply overdone it in the gym. The roast was overdone and tough as a hockey puck. One shouldn’t overdo dieting. He puts on so much charm that he overdoes it. Now you’re just overdoing it! Don’t overdo the hamburgers. She overdoes everything she touches. |
The rent was nearly three months overdue.
Helen and Jim have all these overdue bills. Hush now, Charlotte. Your sister’s just overdue for Aunt Sally. Our daughter was six days overdue. I have a habit of having overdue library books, hmmm . . . Reform in my organizational set-up is now overdue. That country is overdue for industrial development. She was overdue for some leave. Her plane is overdue by two hours! |
| Derivatives: | |
| Adjective: overdone Noun: overdoer, overdoing |
Noun: overdueness |
| History of the Word: | |
| Old English oferdōn, as in over + perform. | It was first recorded in 1835-45, as over- + due. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for Overdo versus Overdue
Apple Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com: overdo, overdue
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Washing in Mud, <https://visualhunt.com/f2/photo/3764160746/bd0314d221/>, by lejoe, <https://visualhunt.com/author/f646de>, under the CC BY-2.0 license, via VisualHunt.
