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# overflow

«overflow» in Mova's school dictionary: **to flow over the edge because something is too full, like…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

verb (overflow, overflows, overflowed, overflowing); noun (an overflow, overflows)

### meaning for a pupil

1) To overflow means to flow over the edge because something is too full, like a bath. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#m1)

2) A place overflows when there are too many people or things to fit. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#m2)

3) An overflow is the water or things that spill over, or a pipe or hole that lets extra water out. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#m3)

4) Overflowing with a feeling means having a lot of it, like overflowing with joy. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#m4)

### sense in the lessons

In everyday safety, never leave a running bath or sink, because it can overflow and flood the floor; most baths and sinks have an overflow hole. In science, overflow links to capacity and volume: a jug can only hold so much. In maths word problems, overflow means the amount above the capacity: if a 2-litre jug gets 3 litres, 1 litre overflows. Rivers overflow their banks in floods. In computing, overflow means a number too big to store.

### examples

- Turn the tap off before the bath overflows! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x1)
- The river overflowed after days of heavy rain. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x2)
- The bin was overflowing with rubbish. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x3)
- The hall was so full the crowd overflowed into the corridor. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x4)
- Water went down the overflow pipe. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x5)
- If you pour 3 litres into a 2-litre jug, 1 litre will overflow. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x6)
- Her heart was overflowing with happiness. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x7)
- The car park was full, so we parked in the overflow car park. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x8)
- Again the theatre was filled to overflowing, and again the Clown gave his imitation amidst the cheers of the crowd. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/#x9)

### note

Past: «overflowed» (not «overflown», which is the past participle of «overfly», to fly over). For numbers: overflow amount = amount poured minus capacity (if it is more than 0). Stress: verb o-ver-FLOW, noun O-ver-flow.

### In the corpora

- [Dishwasher detergent is made not to foam, so washing-up liquid must never go in a dishwasher: the foam would overflow.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chemistry/24-soap-and-why-washing-works/18/)
- [If the toilet is blocked, stop flushing, because flushing again makes it overflow.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/109-baths-water-and-doors/10/)
- [Leo let the bath overflow while he played a game, mopped it with towels and hid them.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/343-accidents-told-too-late/5/)
- [A bath left running can overflow and damage floors and the ceiling below.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/361-crayons-fridges-paper-planes-and-a-stolen-bike/16/)
- [The sea does not overflow because as much water evaporates from it as rivers pour in.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/world/50-why-the-earth-is-so/6/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «overflow» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/O/overflow/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.