over-intellectualadj.
/ˌəʊv(ə)rᵻntᵻˈlɛktʃʊəl/, /ˌəʊv(ə)rᵻntᵻˈlɛktʃ(ᵿ)l/, /ˌəʊv(ə)rᵻntᵻˈlɛktjʊəl/, /ˌəʊv(ə)rᵻntᵻˈlɛktjᵿl/, U.S. /ˈˌoʊvərˌɪn(t)əˈlɛk(t)ʃ(əw)əl/ Excessively intellectual; overly concerned with reason or mental processes.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > understanding > intelligence, cleverness > intellectual superiority > [adjective] > excessively
over-intellectual1854
over-intellectualized1929
1854 W. Bagehot Coll. Wks. (1965) I. 219 It had no feverish excitement, nor over-intellectual introspection.
1874 Appleton's Jrnl. 14 Feb. 217/2 In all probability the time will come when Pickwick, and Cuttle, and Pegotty, and Micawber, and the rest, will come to have no relish for over-intellectual readers.
1904 Jrnl. Philos. 1 115 It does not follow that truth is without inherent worth and objective standing and that it is a mere instrument of easy transition to peace and harmony in an over-intellectual experience.
1966 Asian Surv. 6 641 Indonesian educational leaders now criticized the Dutch system for being over-intellectual and unduly abstract.
2002 Scotsman (Nexis) 17 Aug. 11 As a boy, Simmonds was unpopular and over-intellectual.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2004; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1854