overrelativize

From over- +‎ relativize.

overrelativize (third-person singular simple present overrelativizes, present participle overrelativizing, simple past and past participle overrelativized)

1. (transitive) To relativize excessively.
   • 1994, Stephan Bühnen, “In Quest of Susu”, in David Henige, editor, History in Africa: A Journal of Method, volume 21, Atlanta, Ga.: African Studies Association, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 21:

     The discussion of ethnicity in anthropological and historical quarters has been dominated in recent years by a tendency to overrelativize the notion of ethnicity for precolonial Africa.

   • 1996, David K. Clark, “Relativism, Fideism & the Promise of Postliberalism”, in Timothy R. Phillips, Dennis L. Okholm, editors, The Nature of Confession: Evangelicals & Postliberals in Conversation, Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, →ISBN, part III (Realism & Foundationalism), page 110:

     They believe that in emphasizing the autonomy of Christian thinking, postliberalism errs as Barth did in overrelativizing the faith.

   • 2024, Mark Freeman, “The (Al)lure of Narrative: Information, Misinformation, and Disinformation in the Time of Coronavirus”, in Martin Dege, Irene Strasser, editors, Narrative in Crisis: Reflections from the Limits of Storytelling (Explorations in Narrative Psychology), New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 26:

     Nor do I want to overrelativize things or establish some sort of spurious moral equivalence between us and them.