overcharge

[ verb oh-ver-chahrj; noun oh-ver-chahrj ]

verb (used with object)

, o·ver·charged, o·ver·charg·ing.

1. to charge (a purchaser) too high a price:

   When the manager realized we'd been overcharged, she gave us a credit for the difference.

2. to fill too full; overload.
3. to exaggerate:

   to overcharge the importance of ancestry.

verb (used without object)

, o·ver·charged, o·ver·charg·ing.

1. to make an excessive charge; charge too much for something.

noun

1. a charge in excess of a stated or just price.
2. an act of overcharging.
3. an excessive load.

overcharge

verb

1. to charge too much
2. tr to fill or load beyond capacity
3. literary.
   another word for exaggerate

noun

1. an excessive price or charge
2. an excessive load

Other Words From

• over·charger noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of overcharge¹

Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; over-, charge

Example Sentences

While prosecutors past have used that discretion to "overcharge" or "follow tough-on-crime agendas," she said, "what you see now is that we have this new generation of prosecutors who are bringing in new agendas and new perspectives with regard to fundamental fairness, with regard to exactly what a prosecutor should be doing and what makes for a good prosecutor."

From Salon

In practice, many insurers overcharge the federal government hundreds of billions of dollars in inflated estimates, often by adding diagnosis codes that make individuals appear sicker on paper than they are in reality.

From Salon

Due to this capture, Google is able to overcharge text-ad clients and shroud its actual terms in secrecy in a way that it hasn’t with more visually oriented ads.

From Slate

Valve Corporation is being accused of using its market dominance to overcharge 14 million people in the UK.

From BBC

In September, the Federal Trade Commission sued Amazon, alleging the e-commerce behemoth abuses its position in the marketplace to inflate prices on and off its platform, overcharge sellers and stifle competition.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• cheat
• fleece
• overtax