Overloved

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. An intense degree of affection that exceeds typical expressions of love can lead to overwhelming feelings of attachment and potential harm
2. An emotional condition in which one's fondness is magnified beyond usual limits, possibly resulting in detrimental relationships and dependencies
3. Loved so much that the attention becomes overpowering and possibly damaging

Etymology: "Overloved" is the past tense and past participle of "overlove," so its story belongs to the verb. The prefix "over-" here carries its ordinary sense of excess or going beyond what is proper, and "love" is the ordinary root word, so the combination means loving someone or something too much. The idea is old: Old English already had "oferlufu," a noun meaning excessive love, showing that English speakers were describing devotion that had tipped into excess more than a thousand years ago. The adjective sense, "adored to excess," grows naturally from that verb. A person described as overloved is one who has received more affection than seems healthy or fitting, and the word is usually used with a hint of concern or mild judgement rather than praise.

Synonyms: cherished too much, excessively adored

Antonyms: neglected, ignored