overwhelmed

The word “overwhelmed” means completely overcome by emotion, work, or difficulty, to the point of struggling to cope. In plain terms, so affected by something that you can barely cope with it.

“Overwhelmed” is pronounced oh-vuh-WEHLMD (/ˌoʊvɚˈ(h)wɛlmd/ in IPA).

Here is “overwhelmed” used in a sentence: “New parents often feel overwhelmed in the first few weeks.”

“Overwhelmed” is an adjective.

“Overwhelmed” is a fairly common word in modern English.

Being stressed means feeling pressure or tension, while being overwhelmed means being so overcome by emotion, work, or difficulty that you struggle to cope. Overwhelmed describes a more intense state where the demands exceed what you can manage.

Overwhelmed means completely overcome by emotion, work, or difficulty, whereas underwhelmed means disappointed by something that failed to impress. They are near-opposites, and the plain form 'whelmed' is rarely used on its own.

You are usually overwhelmed 'by' or 'with' something, as in 'overwhelmed by grief' or 'overwhelmed with work.' Both are correct, though 'by' often suits emotions and sudden events while 'with' often suits a quantity of tasks.

Not always. While overwhelmed often describes struggling to cope with work or difficulty, it can also describe being overcome by a positive emotion, as in 'overwhelmed by joy' or 'overwhelmed with gratitude.' The context decides whether it is negative or positive.