Overview
- Multiple outlets reported on Friday, May 22, 2026 that searches for words such as “disregard,” “ignore,” “skip,” and “dismiss” produced conversational, chatbot‑style replies in the AI Overview instead of definitions or summaries.
- The AI Overview panel appears above the first links and can push the Merriam‑Webster dictionary box out of view, leaving large empty space that forces users to scroll for a normal definition.
- Reporters found the behavior repeatable across several words and noted that adding modifiers like “definition” does not always force a correct dictionary response.
- Google did not issue a public comment by the time coverage published, and journalists characterized the issue as a likely bug that will require a patch.
- The incident recalls earlier viral mistakes from AI Overviews and highlights the risk that putting a generative layer at the top of search will degrade reliability and everyday usefulness for people who rely on quick lookups.