go overboard

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go overboard (idiom)
/ɡoʊ ˈoʊvərˌbɔːrd/

Meanings

1. To do too much of something.
2. To act in an extreme or excessive way.
3. To show too much enthusiasm or excitement.
4. (Literal) To fall or jump out of a boat into the water.

Synonyms: overdo; exaggerate; overreact; overindulge; go too far.

Variants

• overboard
• go way overboard
• don’t go overboard

Usage Note

The terms “overboard” and “go overboard” are related but not the same.

• “Overboard” usually means to fall out of a boat, or figuratively, to give up or discard something carelessly.
• “Go overboard” is more common in everyday English and means to act excessively, to overdo something, though it also has the same literal sense of falling out of a boat.

Example Sentences

1. She really goes overboard with the decorations, and the house looks like a wedding hall.
2. He often goes overboard when he argues, turning small disagreements into huge fights.
3. The fans go overboard with excitement whenever the singer comes on stage.
4. She tends to go way overboard with shopping whenever there’s a sale.
5. Try to be generous, but don’t go overboard with your spending.
6. A sailor accidentally went overboard during the storm. (literal)
7. Don’t throw all your chances overboard just because of one mistake. (Here, “overboard” means to lose or give up something valuable carelessly.)

Origin and History

Nautical Origins

The phrase “go overboard” began as a literal nautical expression, describing a person or object going over the side of a ship into the sea. This sense was well established in early modern English maritime writing. The imagery of something or someone being lost to the water later allowed the phrase to take on figurative meanings, including the idea of discarding or losing something. Over time, it came to mean exceeding proper limits, acting with abandon, or showing excessive enthusiasm.

Country of Origin

The earliest uses of “go overboard” appear in English maritime contexts, and the phrase developed firmly within the English language. It first appeared in the seafaring vocabulary of England during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The modern figurative sense, however, became prominent in the United States during the early twentieth century.

Earliest Printed Record

The earliest recorded use of “go overboard” dates from around 1585–1586, in writings associated with the Earl of Leicester. While those early references are difficult to access in full-text facsimile, they establish the phrase’s presence in late sixteenth-century English. The earliest widely available printed example occurs in Captain John Smith’s The Generall Historie of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles (1624). Smith describes shipboard events with the line:

“the next morning … one died, whom they threw over board.”

This demonstrates the purely literal maritime sense.

The figurative meaning of “go overboard” is not seen in print until much later. One of the earliest confirmed examples in this sense appears in an American short story by Damon Runyon, published in Collier’s magazine on 26 September 1931. Runyon wrote in street vernacular: “We go overboard to-day,” showing the idiom in its modern meaning of “to go to extremes.”

Development Over Time

From the late 1500s through the 1600s, “go overboard” appeared consistently in maritime literature to describe accidental falls, burials at sea, or cargo being discarded. Related phrases such as “go by the board” also carried the sense of being lost or destroyed. By the 19th century, the literal meaning was common in newspapers and official reports. The figurative sense, meaning “to act excessively,” began to emerge more clearly in the 20th century, especially in North America.

Origin Conclusion

The evidence supports that “go overboard” originated as a straightforward nautical phrase in England, attested in the late 16th century. The idiom evolved gradually from literal maritime use to figurative application. Its modern meaning of going to extremes is a relatively recent development, appearing in American print in the early 20th century. The phrase thus illustrates a classic case of a seafaring term expanding into general speech and acquiring metaphorical life beyond its original setting.

Behavior, Emotion