oversee

verb

over·​see ˌō-vər-ˈsē 

oversaw ˌō-vər-ˈsȯ  ; overseen ˌō-vər-ˈsēn  ; overseeing

transitive verb

1

: survey, watch

From his hilltop home he can oversee the river below.

2

a

: inspect, examine

oversees all new machinery

b

: to watch over and direct (an undertaking, a group of workers, etc.) in order to ensure a satisfactory outcome or performance : supervise

was hired to oversee the design and construction of the new library

oversaw 20 employees

Synonyms of oversee

• supervise
• manage
• operate
• regulate
• handle
• control
• conduct
• govern

Examples of oversee in a Sentence

He was hired to oversee design and construction of the new facility.

will oversee the new manufacturing division

Recent Examples on the Web

John Freeman is an executive editor at Knopf who oversees Morrison’s publishing program. — Leigh Haber, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026

The judge denied Fischer’s request to appoint and fund a special master to oversee the privilege screen but allowed defense attorneys to review the records themselves instead of prosecutors. — Daniel Lempres, Sacbee.com, 2 July 2026

The White House previously said the president's business interests are overseen by his children. — Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 1 July 2026

Cloudflare, a company that oversees much of the internet’s web traffic, is digging its heels in over AI web crawlers. — Samantha Elkins, NBC news, 1 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for oversee

• agree
• allee
• banshee
• beastly
• bibi
• bowsprit
• carefree
• cerci
• chablis
• cowpea
• crappie
• crappy

Kids Definition

oversee

verb

over·​see ˌō-vər-ˈsē 

oversaw -ˈsȯ  ; overseen -ˈsēn  ; overseeing

1

: to look down upon : survey

2

a

: to look over : examine

b

: superintend, supervise