n. 1. Generally, the condition that occurs when data resulting from input or processing requires more bits than have been provided in hardware or software to store the data. Examples of overflow include a floating-point operation whose result is too large for the number of bits allowed for the exponent, a string that exceeds the bounds of the array allocated for it, and an integer operation whose result contains too many bits for the register into which it is to be stored. See also overflow error. Compare underflow. 2. The part of a data item that cannot be stored because the data exceeds the capacity of the available data structure.
