overlap

verb

over·lap | \ ˌō-vər-ˈlap

How to pronounce overlap (audio)

\

overlapped; overlapping; overlaps

Definition of overlap

transitive verb

1 : to extend over or past and cover a part of The roof shingles overlap each other.

2 : to have something in common with Baseball season overlaps the football season in September.

intransitive verb

1 : to occupy the same area in part The two towns overlap.

2 : to have something in common Some of their duties overlap.

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Examples of overlap in a Sentence

The roof shingles overlap each other. Baseball season overlaps football season in September. Some of your duties overlap his.

Recent Examples on the Web Bring the two base corners together, dab one with water, then overlap them and press to seal. — Hetty Mckinnon, Bon Appétit, "How to Fold Dumplings, For Novices and Experts," 11 Apr. 2021 Just keep in mind that cultural identities can overlap in this larger classification of AAPI people. AAPI: Asian American and Pacific Islander. — Shanon Maglente, Good Housekeeping, "Understanding What the Term AAPI — Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders — Means," 7 Apr. 2021 Fold the top half of the parchment paper over the fish and overlap small folds along the open edge to seal. — Darlene Zimmerman, Detroit Free Press, "Asian flavors enhance salmon cooked in parchment paper," 4 Apr. 2021 Nobody knows exactly how much these groups overlap. — Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Extending vaccination to the overweight adds hundreds of thousands to inoculation pool," 18 Mar. 2021 But international and domestic observers are skeptical that the political and judicial don't overlap in this case. — Rafael Romo, CNN, "Questions mount over former president's arrest in Bolivia," 15 Mar. 2021 Split-leg running shorts feature separate panels that overlap on the side hem. — Sian Babish, chicagotribune.com, "The best running short for women," 1 Mar. 2021 Of the consensus top three prospects in the draft — Edwards, LaMelo Ball and James Wiseman — Edwards is the only one who doesn’t overlap position with one of the two franchise linchpins in D’Angelo Russell and Karl-Anthony Towns. — Chris Hine, Star Tribune, "Possible No. 1 pick Anthony Edwards says Wolves workout was 'great'," 11 Nov. 2020 Although during the past year America’s racial reckoning has rightfully focused on the long history of racial oppression against Black people, aspects of Asian American history converge, overlap and intersect with these struggles for racial justice. — Washington Post, "A convergence of racial reckoning for Black and Asian Americans," 24 Mar. 2021

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'overlap.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

20 Apr 2021

Cite this Entry

“Overlap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overlap. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

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More Definitions for overlap

overlap

verb

English Language Learners Definition of overlap

: to lie over the edge of (something) : to cover part of the edge of (something)

: to happen at the same time as something else

: to have parts that are the same as parts of something else

See the full definition for overlap in the English Language Learners Dictionary

overlap

verb

over·lap | \ ˌō-vər-ˈlap

\

overlapped; overlapping

Kids Definition of overlap

: to place or be placed so that a part of one covers a part of another The roof shingles overlap.

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