Definition

1. Verb (transitive):

   • To cause something to become excessively or undesirably hot.
   • To stimulate or agitate excessively, often leading to instability.

2. Verb (intransitive):

   • To become excessively or undesirably hot.

Usage

• As a transitive verb, "overheat" takes a direct object (e.g., ).
• As an intransitive verb, it does not take a direct object (e.g., ).
• It is commonly used in mechanical, economic, and metaphorical contexts.

Examples

• Transitive verb:
  • Running the heater constantly will overheat the small room.
  • The central bank is careful not to overheat the economy with excessive stimulus.
• Intransitive verb:
  • If the cooling fan fails, the computer processor will overheat.
  • The debate overheated when personal insults were introduced.

Advanced Usage

• Economic Context: To describe an economy growing too quickly, often leading to high inflation.
  • Economists warn that rapid credit growth could overheat the housing market.
• Metaphorical Use: To describe a situation or discussion becoming too intense or agitated.
  • Tensions in the meeting room began to overheat.

Variants and Related Words

• Overheated (adjective): Describing something that has become too hot or a situation that is excessively agitated.
  • An overheated engine can cause serious damage.
  • The newspaper editorial reflected an overheated political climate.

Synonyms

• Overwarm (verb): To make too warm.
• Superheat (verb): To heat a liquid above its boiling point without vaporization, or more generally, to heat to an extreme degree.

Phrasal Verbs

(The word "overheat" does not commonly form phrasal verbs. Its meaning is contained within the single word.)

Related Idioms

(There are no common idioms that use the word "overheat" as a key component.)

Verb

1. make excessively or undesirably hot
   • The room was overheated
2. get excessively and undesirably hot
   • The car engines overheated