overtake

verb

over·​take ˌō-vər-ˈtāk 

overtook ˌō-vər-ˈtu̇k  ; overtaken ˌō-vər-ˈtā-kən  ; overtaking

transitive verb

1

a

: to catch up with

b

: to catch up with and pass by

2

: to come upon suddenly

Synonyms

• catch
• catch up (with)
• overhaul

Examples of overtake in a Sentence

She overtook the other runners and went on to win the race.

The sign says “No Overtaking.”

Seasickness can overtake passengers when the ship encounters a storm.

Recent Examples on the Web

But this progress has been overtaken by accelerating warming. —Joan Meiners, The Arizona Republic, 16 Oct. 2024

Nvidia is quickly gaining on Apple and may soon overtake it as the world’s most valuable company. —Megan Poinski, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2024

That captures how thoroughly the salads have overtaken her life—and kitchen. —Angela Haupt, TIME, 15 Oct. 2024

For now this effect is stronger, delaying how soon the rotational speedup will overtake the tidal slowdown. —Mark Fischetti, Scientific American, 15 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from over entry 1 + taken to take

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

overtake

verb

over·​take ˌō-vər-ˈtāk 

overtook -ˈtu̇k  ; overtaken -ˈtā-kən  ; overtaking

1

a

: to catch up with

b

: to catch up with and pass by

2

: to come upon suddenly

a blizzard overtook the hunting party