v. 1
To engulf, surge over and submerge.
The dinghy was overwhelmed by the great wave.
v. 2
To overpower, crush.
In December 1939 the Soviet Union attacked Finland with overwhelming force.
v. 3
To overpower emotionally.
He was overwhelmed with guilt.
n. 1
The state or condition of being overwhelmed.

Related words

Forms

Plural: overwhelms → break-downs…
Past participle: overwhelmed
e.g. overwhelmed → overpowered, subdued, overtaken, confounded…

overcome We helped each other to overcome the difficulties.
overtake The Prince followed, but could not overtake her.
subdue The police used tear gas to subdue the protestors.
overpower Layla knew that she couldn't physically overpower Sami.
drown Our worries don't drown in alcohol. They can swim.
submerge An osprey can completely submerge itself when it dives after a fish.

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

3 letters: awe¹
4 letters: ruin², sink¹, grip¹, bury², stun¹, rout¹
5 letters: crush¹, swamp¹, drown¹, quell¹, quash¹, whelm
6 letters: defeat², absorb², plunge¹, devour³, subdue², deluge², engulf², ravish, overgo
7 letters: swallow², conquer², oppress², immerse²
8 letters: overcome³, suppress², overflow³, overtake³, confound², vanquish², submerge², astonish³, inundate³, overbear
9 letters: overthrow³, overpower⁴
10 letters: overmaster
13 letters: overwhelmment
15 letters: overwhelmedness

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (ruin² = 2 syllables).