overcare
A person's overcare leads them to check the door lock three times before leaving.
Definition
- Noun:
- Excessive or unnecessary caution: "overcare" refers to a state of being too careful or meticulous, often to the point of being counterproductive or causing anxiety.
Usage Examples
- (Her excessive caution caused a delay.)
- (Too much attention to trivial matters hindered progress.)
Advanced Usage
"to be prone to overcare": to have a tendency to be excessively careful.
- He is prone to overcare when preparing for exams, which often results in burnout. (His tendency to be overly careful leads to exhaustion.)
"overcare as a form of anxiety": excessive caution driven by fear of making mistakes.
- Her overcare in social situations stems from a fear of being judged. (Her extreme carefulness is rooted in social anxiety.)
Variants and Related Words
- Overcareful (adj): excessively careful or cautious.
- The overcareful driver checked the mirrors multiple times before merging. (The driver was too cautious.)
- Overcarefulness (n): the quality of being excessively careful.
- His overcarefulness in editing made the article sound unnatural. (Too much caution in editing ruined the flow.)
Synonyms
- Overcautiousness: the state of being too cautious.
- Hypervigilance: extreme alertness or watchfulness, often to a fault.
Related Idioms
- To err on the side of caution: to be more careful than necessary, which can lead to overcare.
- She always errs on the side of caution, but sometimes it becomes overcare. (She is overly careful, but it can be excessive.)