# overshoot

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈəʊ.və.ʃuːt/ · frequency rank #51,896

## Definitions
1. The amount by which something goes too far.
2. The situation where the population of a species exceeds its environment's carrying capacity.
3. The portion of a letter extending above the capline of other letters of the same font, or the relative degree of such extent.

## Etymology
From Middle English overshoten, oversheten (“to shoot beyond, shoot past, pour down from above”), perhaps continuing Old English ofersċēotan (“to shoot down”), equivalent to over- + shoot.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/overshoot