To overburden means to load someone or something with too much weight, work, or responsibility. When teachers overburden students with five hours of homework every night, they're asking more than students can reasonably handle. When you overburden a backpack with heavy textbooks, you might strain its seams or hurt your shoulders carrying it.

The word combines “over” (too much) with “burden” (a heavy load). You can physically overburden something: a bridge overburdened with traffic might develop cracks. But the word more often describes overwhelming people with duties or worries. A single parent working two jobs while caring for three children might feel overburdened. A city's hospitals become overburdened during a flu outbreak when too many patients need care at once.

Notice that being busy isn't the same as being overburdened. A student with homework, soccer practice, and piano lessons might manage fine, but adding three more activities could overburden their schedule. The key is exceeding what someone can handle without burning out or doing poor work. When you feel overburdened, you're carrying more than you can reasonably manage, and your load has crossed the line from manageable to crushing.