Standard Lemma guide

overfishing

noun · verb · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • CMU ARPABET: OW1 V ER0 F IH2 SH IH0 NG Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Fishing that reduces the stock of remaining fish in an area to below that which is acceptable.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: overexploitation, fishing, exploitation

2

verb

Meaning 2

present participle and gerund of overfish

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: form-of, gerund, participle, present

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

16 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Dutch: overbevissing — excessive fishing
  • Finnish: liikakalastus — excessive fishing
  • Finnish: ylikalastus — excessive fishing
  • French: surpêche — excessive fishing
  • Greek: υπεραλίευση (yperalíefsi) — excessive fishing
  • Hungarian: túlhalászat — excessive fishing
  • Hungarian: túlhalászás — excessive fishing
  • Irish: ró-iascaireacht — excessive fishing
  • Norwegian Bokmål: overfiske — excessive fishing
  • Polish: przełowienie — excessive fishing
  • Portuguese: sobrepesca — excessive fishing
  • Russian: чрезме́рный вы́лов (črezmérnyj výlov) — excessive fishing
  • Swedish: utfiskning — excessive fishing
  • Swedish: överfiske — excessive fishing
  • Turkish: aşırı avlanma — excessive fishing
  • Yoruba: ìpẹjalápajù — excessive fishing
Real reading context

overfishing in complete knowledge articles