overspecify

verb
/ˌoʊvɚˈspɛsɪˌfaɪ/US

Etymology

From over- + specify.

  1. derived from specificō
  2. derived from specifier
  3. inherited from specifien
  4. prefixed as overspecify — “over + specify

Definitions

  1. To specify in excessive detail.

    • The customer overspecified the requirements and now we're contractually required to build it this way. Does he think he's an engineer?
    • Manufacturers of sponge-rubber products have noted a tendency for designers and other users to overspecify.
  2. To specify excessive capability.

    • As usual the customer overspecified the requirements, it's like asking for a car that seats 20 and fits in a compact car's parking space.
    • Design your mobile water supply apparatus around the chassis that you intend to use. Don’t overspecify or underspecify the unit.
  3. To provide redundant or inconsistent information.

    • An overspecified truth table contains at least one decision that will never be executed because it is already specified in a previous decision...
    • A noun phrase is overspecified when it is used in a context where a pronoun would have been unambiguous.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for overspecify. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA