English

Noun

overburthen ‎(plural overburthens)

1. Archaic form of overburden.
   • 1774, Isaac de Pinto, An Essay on Circulation and Credit, translated by S. Baggs, London: J. Ridley, p. 122,

     The over burthen of these expenses falls upon the sale of the commodity, and lessens the consumption.

   • 1832, John W. Colenso, "A Description of Happy-Union Tin Stream-work at Pentuan" in Transactions of the Royal Geological Society of Cornwall, T. Vigurs, Vol. 4, p. 38

     The overburthen contains no sea-sand, but is composed of silt and river gravel […] .

Verb

overburthen ‎(third-person singular simple present overburthens, present participle overburthening, simple past and past participle overburthened)

1. Archaic form of overburden.
   • 1924, Herman Melville, Billy Budd, London: Constable & Co., Chapter 13,

     In short the last man in the world, one would think, to be overburthened with thoughts, especially those perilous thoughts that must needs belong to a conspirator in any serious project, or even to the underling of such a conspirator.