Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To extend or use beyond what is reasonable, usual or proper.
- intransitive verb To subject to undue strain.
- intransitive verb To stretch (one's muscles or another body part) to the point of strain or injury.
- intransitive verb To stretch one's body or muscles to the point of strain or injury.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To stretch or strain excessively; overstrain; exaggerate.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb To
stretch too far - verb To stretch
over something
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb strain abnormally
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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The EFCC had also begged the court to send them to prison custody till the time the ruling would be delivered owing to what it called overstretch of its detention facilities.
Vanguard News 2009
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Its army is in overstretch, with some tales of poor morale floating about.
Archive 2007-08-19 2007
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Its army is in overstretch, with some tales of poor morale floating about.
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We get a few ritual whimpers about "overstretch" and then Liam crawls back in his box.
Losing the plot Richard 2006
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Since military issues have been in the news of late (although overshadowed by other events) – not least Afghanistan and the "overstretch" suffered by British forces – I intend later today (early evening, British time) to publish a post explaining why Butcher's story is so wide of the mark, together with an analysis of the current Israeli military operation, and its implications for both US and British forces in the war against terror.
The horrors of war Richard 2006
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The real point is that the most pressing issues in Helmand and elsewhere are "overstretch" – not enough troops – and crap equipment.
Snarl mode Richard 2006
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If US position ever changes Israel will fold like a tent and one day I expect either that to happen or Israel like us will become another victim of its own "overstretch" and imperial hubris. by
A Review of The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine by Ilan Pappe 2007
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Better that than the unremitting scattergun approach that relies on the constant, tedious repetition of the sacred mantras "overstretch" and "underfunding".
Archive 2007-04-01 Peter Troy 2007
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The fact of the matter is that our armed forces are already in a state of 'overstretch'and it would be impossible for us to do even if we wanted to.
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In terms of "overstretch," the report says, "the tank of goodwill now runs on vapour; many experienced staff are talking of leaving."'
OpEdNews - Quicklink: Britain: Our forces can't carry on like this, says General Sir Richard Dannatt 2007
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