overlay

verb over·lay \ ˌō-vər-ˈlā \

|Updated on: 17 Jun 2018

Examples: overlay in a Sentence

Definition of overlay

overlaid play \ˌō-vər-ˈlād\; overlaying

transitive verb

1 a : to lay or spread over or across : superimpose

b : to prepare an overlay for

2 : overlie 2

See overlay defined for English-language learners

See overlay defined for kids

Examples of overlay in a Sentence

you should apply a coat of primer first, and then overlay it with two coats of paint
cedar shingles overlaying one another on the roof

Recent Examples of overlay from the Web

Grubbs starts dribbling like Forest Gump, all while the actual audio from the ABC broadcasters is overlaid over the video.

— langston wertz jr., charlotteobserver, "That viral parody video of JR Smith's NBA Finals gaffe? It was filmed in Charlotte.," 3 June 2018
Chen and Rohla overlaid that data with voting tallies by precinct, each representing about 200 to 1,000 people who used the same polling place.

— lydia denworth, Scientific American, "Thanksgiving Dinner May End Sooner If Guests Pass the Gravy across a Partisan Divide," 1 June 2018
Director Francesca Zambello’s production, first seen here in 2009, overlays the story with cunning exactitude on nearly two centuries of American history.

— joshua kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, "Bingeing on ‘Breaking Bad’ or ‘The Wire’? Wagner’s ‘Ring’ paved the way," 30 May 2018
Unlike virtual reality glasses such as Oculus Rift, which block out the real world, augmented reality glasses such as the R-7s allow wearers to see the real world while other images can be overlaid in the periphery.

— marco della cava, USA TODAY, "Porsche now using augmented reality glasses to repair cars," 29 May 2018
And the Boomers, as seen in the very label classic applying to the soundtrack of their primes, have excelled at overlaying the mantle of myth on stories whose ink was still drying.

— spencer kornhaber, The Atlantic, "Was Classic Rock a Sound, or a Tribe?," 28 May 2018
The researchers then overlaid those trees with information on each individual’s health conditions, gleaned from billing codes and lab tests, and used the combined data to estimate the heritability of about 500 traits and diseases.

— jocelyn kaiser, Science | AAAS, "Family trees hidden in medical records could predict your disease risk," 17 May 2018
Their techniques include masking, cropping, fragmenting, and overlaying — portraying clear depictions of human beings to the absence of them altogether.

— melania hidalgo, The Cut, "Can We Capture Humanism?," 11 May 2018
On the taskbar, a small shield icon overlays the task icon, indicating that a WDAG window is in use.

— mark hachman, PCWorld, "How Microsoft Edge's hidden WDAG browser lets you surf the web securely," 8 May 2018

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

First Known Use of overlay

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

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overlay Synonyms

Synonyms

blanket, carpet, coat, cover, overlie, overspread, sheet;

cloak, clothe, curtain, veil;

circle, encircle, encompass;

Other Handicraft Terms

biscuit, darn, tambour, wrought

overlay

noun over·lay \ ˈō-vər-ˌlā \

Definition of overlay

: a covering either permanent or temporary: such as

a : an ornamental veneer

b : a decorative and contrasting design or article placed on top of a plain one

c : a transparent sheet containing graphic matter to be superimposed on another sheet

See overlay defined for English-language learners

Examples of overlay in a Sentence

a silver ring with gold overlay
The wooden table has a marble overlay.

Recent Examples of overlay from the Web

Alessandra Ford Balazs The model wore a dreamy, romantic dress for the evening reception, featuring intricate embroidery on a blush tulle-like overlay.

— krystin arneson, Glamour, "The Best Outfits Guests Wore to the Royal Wedding Evening Reception," 20 May 2018
Ochsner would also be able to add retail stores and other commercial venues if the area's zoning is changed from the current single-family residential designation to an H-1 medical service district/commercial parkway overlay district.

— littice bacon-blood, NOLA.com, "Vote deferred on Ochsner zoning request, proposed parking lot in Old Jefferson," 16 May 2018
Fresh kombu seaweed — a flavorful, oceanic overlay that imparts umami and important minerals such as iron and calcium to the broth — was foraged that morning from Carmet Beach, also in Bodega.

— leilani marie labong, San Francisco Chronicle, "Start a tradition with a Bodega beach clambake," 11 May 2018
Lakewood Truck Park will have to go through both the Architectural Board of Review (ABR) process for design and architecture, as well as receive Planning Commission conditional use approval as a mixed-use overlay district.

— john benson, cleveland.com, "New Lakewood Truck Park bar proposed at Detroit and Edwards avenues," 7 May 2018
The neighborhood has no historic overlay, so homes with historic value could be destroyed without anyone in city government intervening, said Jerre Tracy, Historic Fort Worth executive director.

— gordon dickson, star-telegram, "Fort Worth's Samuels Avenue is booming, but how much of its past is worth saving? | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 1 Mar. 2018
From May 25 through September 3, the Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland will get an Incredibles overlay with decorations and music inspired by the original movie and its new sequel.

— arthur levine, USA TODAY, "Disney World kicks off an "Incredible Summer"," 25 May 2018
Now, an augmented reality overlay can project the step-by-step directions over the real world, showing you where to go by using your camera.

— arielle pardes, WIRED, "Everything Google Announced at Its Big Show," 8 May 2018
The sweet image of that darling black T.V. family under an overlay of shattered glass (the crack began over Cosby’s face) struck a chord.

— kierna mayo, The Root, "How Bill Cosby Divided Black America," 28 Apr. 2018

First Known Use of overlay

15th century

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

OVERLAY Defined for English Language Learners

overlay

verb

Definition of overlay for English Language Learners

: to cover (something) with a layer of another material

overlay

noun

Definition of overlay for English Language Learners

: material that covers the complete surface or part of the surface of something and that changes its appearance
: a transparent sheet with information or pictures on it that is placed on top of another sheet to change what is being shown