oversolicitous

English

Etymology

over- +‎ solicitous

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌəʊvəsəˈlɪsɪtəs/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌoʊvɚsəˈlɪsɪɾəs/
• Hyphenation: over‧so‧lic‧i‧tous

Adjective

oversolicitous (comparative more oversolicitous, superlative most oversolicitous)

1. Excessively solicitous.
   • 1693, Seneca the Younger, chapter XVI, in Roger L'Estrange, transl., Morals, translation of original in Classical Latin, page 88:

     He that is overſolicitous to return a Benefit, thinks the other ſo likewiſe to receive it.

   • 1917, Maximilian P. E. Groszmann, “Malady of Scrupulosity”, in The Exceptional Child, page 673:

     The son of a United States senator (Case 91) was 30 years of age when seen. His condition had been very serious for a long time. He was cured in less than two years by a gradual education which freed him from extreme dependence upon oversolicitous parents.

   • 1974 February 8, John Canaday, “An Armenian Restaurant With a Nonstrolling Musician”, in The New York Times‎^[1], page 37:

     Our waiter could have been performing as the model for what a waiter should be. Several of his tables were filled and he was busy, but kept his eye on us (never hovering, never oversolicitous) and took care of things with a degree of style that I suspect was inborn rather than cultivated.