overadapt

overadapt

English

Etymology

    From over- +‎ adapt.

    Verb

    overadapt (third-person singular simple present overadapts, present participle overadapting, simple past and past participle overadapted)

    1. (ambitransitive) To adapt excessively.
      • 1996, Ralph Hanna, Pursuing History: Middle English Manuscripts and Their Texts, page 189:
        Apparently conscious of the need to achieve a good fit between Chaucer's text and extraneous materials, the scribe overadapted the poem to context by suppressing its generally springy first triplet, copying only those lines that refer to birdsong.
      • 2006, Gil and Dana Stieglitz, Becoming a Godly Wife, page 64:
        In some cases, there is the problem of wives choosing to overadapt or being asked to overadapt. Adapting that takes away individuality, personhood or self-worth is overadapting. Adapting that requires lockstep thinking is overadapting.