overseer

noun

over·​seer ˈō-vər-ˌsir How to pronounce overseer (audio)
ˈō-və-,
-ˌsē-ər;
ˌō-vər-ˈsir,
ˌō-və-,
-ˈsē-ər
plural overseers
: a person who oversees others : a person with supervisory responsibilities
Her insider status was cemented in 1988 with a stint as … overseer of the party's nominating convention.Gwen Ifill
… suggests that in Upper Egypt the control of local affairs by the pharaoh's overseer was gradually diluted during the late Old Kingdom …Robert J. Wenke
Some pension funds proactively keep government overseers up to date so that they will not feel a need to be intrusive.Simon C. Y. Wong

Examples of overseer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But the jail overseer admitted no other wrongdoing in her case, according to a memo the commission sent to the Harris County Jail. Renuka Rayasam, CBS News, 14 Nov. 2023 On October 24th, the clip of his gaffe went viral on Arab social media, where it was portrayed as a glimpse of the effort by the network’s overseers to check the sympathies of their journalists in the field. David D. Kirkpatrick, The New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2023 He was appointed by President John F. Kennedy to head of the U.S. Information Agency, the overseer of Voice of America. Paul Farhi, Washington Post, 25 Apr. 2023 The failure of Israeli intelligence and security forces and of their overseers in the government cannot be overstated. Assaf Orion, Foreign Affairs, 3 Nov. 2023 Industry leaders were incensed about being pursued by an overseer with fangs. Stacy Cowley, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2023 The overseer of this last venture, a manager armed with lacklustre demos, quickly learned that bringing her client to record-label meetings was a must. Michelle Orange, The New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2023 Rome accelerated the appointment of Elisabetta Spitz, a top public-sector manager, as MOSE’s overseer. Emma Bubola Laetitia Vancon, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2023 The coffins signifies death to the slave master or to the overseer. Melissa Noel, Essence, 8 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'overseer.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of overseer was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near overseer

Cite this Entry

“Overseer.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overseer. Accessed 2 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

overseer

noun
over·​seer ˈō-və(r)-ˌsi(ə)r How to pronounce overseer (audio)
-ˌsē-ər;
ˌō-və(r)-ˈsi(ə)r,
-ˈsē-ər
: one that oversees : superintendent

More from Merriam-Webster on overseer

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