Overbook: meaning, definitions and examples
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overbook
[ ˌoʊvərˈbʊk ]
travel and reservations
To overbook means to sell more reservations for a service, such as airline seats or hotel rooms, than are available. This practice is often employed by businesses to account for no-shows or cancellations.
Synonyms
double-book, overcommit, overreserve.
Examples of usage
- The airline decided to overbook the flight to maximize profit.
- Hotel managers often overbook to ensure all rooms are filled.
- The company's policy allows them to overbook trains during peak seasons.
- After overbooking the event, they had to turn away some guests.
- He was frustrated when he found out the hotel overbooked and didn't have a room for him.
Translations
Translations of the word "overbook" in other languages:
🇵🇹 superlotar
🇮🇳 अधिक बुक करना
🇩🇪 überbuchen
🇮🇩 memesan lebih
🇺🇦 перебронювати
🇵🇱 przekroczyć rezerwacje
🇯🇵 オーバーブッキングする
🇫🇷 surcharger
🇪🇸 sobrerreservar
🇹🇷 aşırı rezervasyon yapmak
🇰🇷 과도 예약하다
🇸🇦 الحجز الزائد
🇨🇿 pře rezervovat
🇸🇰 pre rezervovať
🇨🇳 超额预订
🇸🇮 prekoračiti rezervacijo
🇮🇸 ofurbóka
🇰🇿 артық резервтеу
🇬🇪 მეტად დაჯავშნა
🇦🇿 artıq rezervasiya etmək
🇲🇽 sobrereservar
Etymology
The term 'overbook' originated in the early to mid-20th century, as travel became more accessible and airlines began to develop more sophisticated booking systems. It combines the prefix 'over-', meaning too much or excessively, with the word 'book', which comes from the Old English 'boc', meaning a written work or record. The practice of overbooking became prevalent with the rise of commercial airlines, aiming to mitigate the effects of no-shows and cancellations, ultimately maximizing profits. Over time, this practice extended beyond airlines to hotels, restaurants, and various event venues, often leading to customer frustration, particularly when overbooking did not account for actual attendance. The term is now commonly used in the travel industry and has been scrutinized for its impact on customer satisfaction.