I. o ‧ ver ‧ es ‧ ti ‧ mate 1 AC /ˌəʊvərˈestəmeɪt, ˌəʊvərˈestɪmeɪt $ ˌoʊ-/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ estimate , ↑ estimation , ↑ estimator , ↑ overestimate ≠ ↑ underestimate ; verb : ↑ estimate , ↑ overestimate ≠ ↑ underestimate ; adjective : ↑ estimated ]
1 . to think something is better, more important etc than it really is OPP underestimate :
He tends to overestimate his own abilities.
The importance of training in health and safety cannot be overestimated (=is extremely important) .
2 . to guess an amount or value that is too high OPP underestimate :
Most patients overestimated how long they had had to wait to see a doctor.
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COLLOCATIONS
■ phrases
▪ something cannot be overestimated ( also something can hardly be overestimated ) (=used to emphasize that something is very important)
His influence on rock music cannot be overestimated.
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The importance of good medical care can hardly be overestimated.
▪ it is hard/difficult to overestimate something (=used to emphasize that something is very important)
It is hard to overestimate the effect the war has had on these children.
▪ it is easy to overestimate something (=used to say that something is not as important as some people think)
It is easy to overestimate the effect of prison on criminals.
■ adverbs
▪ consistently overestimate something
The CIA consistently overestimated the Soviet Union's military strength.
▪ seriously overestimate something
We seriously overestimated how much confidence he had in himself.
▪ massively/grossly/vastly etc overestimate something
Western countries massively overestimated the extent of the problem.
II. o ‧ ver ‧ es ‧ ti ‧ mate 2 AC /ˌəʊvərˈestəmət, ˌəʊvərˈestɪmət $ ˌoʊ-/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ estimate , ↑ estimation , ↑ estimator , ↑ overestimate ≠ ↑ underestimate ; verb : ↑ estimate , ↑ overestimate ≠ ↑ underestimate ; adjective : ↑ estimated ]
a calculation, judgement, or guess that is too large:
The figure of 30% is clearly an overestimate.