overriding

adjective

over·​rid·​ing ˌō-vər-ˈrī-diŋ 

ˌō-və-

: chief, principal

an overriding concern

Synonyms

• arch
• big
• capital
• cardinal
• central
• chief
• dominant
• first
• foremost
• grand
• great
• greatest
• highest
• key
• leading
• main
• master
• number one
• No. 1
• numero uno
• overbearing
• overmastering
• paramount
• predominant
• preeminent
• premier
• primal
• primary
• principal
• prior
• sovereign
• sovran
• supreme

Examples of overriding in a Sentence

We have one overriding concern.

The weather is the overriding factor in deciding whether to cancel the picnic.

Recent Examples on the Web

While the future of the Iranian nuclear program and expanding the Abraham Accords dominate the agenda, there is an overriding strategic imperative behind Trump’s visit. —Wesley Alexander Hill, Forbes.com, 9 May 2025

For this reason, preserving Taiwan’s autonomy as a thriving democracy is an overriding strategic priority not just for the region but for the entire world. —Larry Diamond, Foreign Affairs, 6 Sep. 2022

Liverpool’s geography therefore contributed as much towards a less structured way of life as an overriding employment culture without contracts or certainty. —Simon Hughes, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025

Based on the company’s presentation at the Consumer Electronics Show on Monday — which featured fresh offerings for robotics and autos, and a new overriding vision for the technology — investors appear to believe that the tech giant, and the A.I. surge more broadly, has more room to rally. —Andrew Ross Sorkin, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for overriding

• coinciding
• subdividing
• abiding
• backsliding
• colliding
• confiding
• deciding
• deriding
• dividing
• nitriding
• presiding
• providing