A rechargeable battery with overcharging protection. According to an embodiment of the present invention, a rechargeable battery includes a case, a first electrode coupled to the case, a second electrode coupled to the case and the second electrode having a portion extending outside of the case, a short bar electrically coupled to said portion of the second electrode, and an extensible member extending from the case and at least a portion of the short bar being on the extensible member with a gap therebetween. The extensible member is configured to couple the short bar electrically to the first electrode in response to an overcharging condition of the rechargeable battery, thereby short-circuiting the first and second electrodes via the short bar.