overlap
verb
over·lap
ˌō-vər-ˈlap 
overlapped; overlapping; overlaps
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.
1
: to occupy the same area in part
The two towns overlap.
2
: to have something in common
Some of their duties overlap.
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
All of these areas start to overlap a little more.
—
Kansas City Star, 30 Sep. 2025
Miami Beach faces overlapping challenges — flooding, traffic, overdevelopment, overtourism, short-term rentals, crime and rising costs — that threaten our quality of life.
—Miami Herald Staff, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
Kennedy and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor for much of their overlapping tenures represented the ideological center of the court at a time when the institution became increasingly conservative.
—Nina Totenberg, NPR, 27 Sep. 2025
However, between 2000 and 2023, rising temperatures began to push the two bird species out of their natural territories, causing their populations to overlap for the first time in the vicinity of San Antonio and giving the birds the opportunity to mate with each other.
—Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overlap
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Kansas City Star, 30 Sep. 2025
Miami Beach faces overlapping challenges — flooding, traffic, overdevelopment, overtourism, short-term rentals, crime and rising costs — that threaten our quality of life.
—Miami Herald Staff, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
Kennedy and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor for much of their overlapping tenures represented the ideological center of the court at a time when the institution became increasingly conservative.
—Nina Totenberg, NPR, 27 Sep. 2025
However, between 2000 and 2023, rising temperatures began to push the two bird species out of their natural territories, causing their populations to overlap for the first time in the vicinity of San Antonio and giving the birds the opportunity to mate with each other.
—Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for overlap
Cite this Entry
“Overlap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overlap. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
overlap
verb
over·lap
ˌō-vər-ˈlap
1
: to lay or lie over (something) so as to partly cover
that piece overlaps the edge
2
: to have something in common
political and social interests that often overlap
3
: to occupy the same area in part
the photos overlap
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