surmount
verb
sur·mount
sər-ˈmau̇nt 
surmounted; surmounting; surmounts
1
: to prevail over : overcome
surmount an obstacle
2
: to get to the top of : climb
3
: to stand or lie at the top of
4
obsolete
: to surpass in quality or attainment : excel
Did you know?
Our verb mount, meaning "ascend, get up onto", comes from the same Latin root as mountain, and we keep those images in mind when using surmount, since climbing up or over a mountain is a symbol of achievement. The word almost always refers to human effort, and almost always in a positive way; thus, we speak of surmounting difficulties, surmounting problems, surmounting hurdles, surmounting handicaps—you get the idea.
Examples of surmount in a Sentence
an Olympic swimmer who surmounted endless obstacles to achieve her goals
Recent Examples on the Web
What's happening right now in America is that Americans across the board appear to be replacing their sense of national identity with their allegiance to partisan identity, or what appears to be happening is that our partisan identities are surmounting our national identity as Americans.
—
Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 June 2025
But in a media world where the barriers to entry are more easily surmounted, people with a strong following or fan base can command a sliver all their own that may no longer go to the mainstream outlet for a fix.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 30 May 2025
Republicans’ tax-and-spending cut package faces a number of hurdles in its path to President Trump’s desk, but the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap could be the tallest to surmount.
—Tobias Burns, The Hill, 21 May 2025
Budget hawks are saying this sets up a tax cliff in the legislation similar to the one Republicans are now trying to surmount, since most of the 2017 Trump tax cuts expire at the end of this year.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for surmount
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Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 June 2025
But in a media world where the barriers to entry are more easily surmounted, people with a strong following or fan base can command a sliver all their own that may no longer go to the mainstream outlet for a fix.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 30 May 2025
Republicans’ tax-and-spending cut package faces a number of hurdles in its path to President Trump’s desk, but the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap could be the tallest to surmount.
—Tobias Burns, The Hill, 21 May 2025
Budget hawks are saying this sets up a tax cliff in the legislation similar to the one Republicans are now trying to surmount, since most of the 2017 Trump tax cuts expire at the end of this year.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for surmount
Cite this Entry
“Surmount.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surmount. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
surmount
verb
sur·mount
sər-ˈmau̇nt
1
: overcome sense 1
surmount an obstacle
2
: to get to the top of : climb
3
: to stand or lie at the top of : crown
a weather vane surmounts the roof
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