overwrite

verb

over·​write ˌō-vər-ˈrīt 

ˌō-və-

overwrote ˌō-vər-ˈrōt 

ˌō-və-

; overwritten ˌō-vər-ˈri-tᵊn 

ˌō-və-

; overwriting ˌō-vər-ˈrī-tiŋ 

ˌō-və-

transitive verb

1

: to write over the surface of

2

: to write in inflated or overly elaborate style

intransitive verb

: to write too much or in an overly elaborate style

Examples of overwrite in a Sentence

The author has a tendency to overwrite.

Recent Examples on the Web

In appealing to the Supreme Court, Wilson's attorneys argued that his carrying a firearm was well within his Second Amendment rights, which could not be overwritten by state law. —Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2024

Equipped with a 170-degree, ultra-wide angle and a 3-inch LCD screen, this dash camera has seamless loop recording and a collision-detecting emergency lock that saves the most recent footage leading up to a collision, preventing valuable footage from being overwritten by new footage. —Amelia McBride, Travel + Leisure, 23 Oct. 2024

While the Terminator franchise canon is notoriously convoluted, this scenario illustrates a straightforward way to cut through the confusion: Each act of time travel creates a new timeline, overwriting every story that came before. —Gavia Baker-Whitelaw, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2024

That dropper had in some cases installed another malware weapon, which FireEye calls ShapeShift, designed to wipe target computers by overwriting every portion of a computer's hard drive with zeros. —Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 20 Sep. 2017

Word History

First Known Use

1820, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

overwrite

verb

over·​write ˌō-və(r)-ˈrīt 

overwrote -ˈrōt  ; overwritten -ˈrit-ᵊn  ; overwriting -ˈrīt-iŋ 

1

: to write over the surface of : write on top of

2

: to write too much or in an overly elaborate style

overwritten accounts of everyday events