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

Kavanaugh oversees emergency requests from Missouri and acted on his own without referring the matter to the full court. — Arkansas Online, 10 Sep. 2026

After a cargo plane overshot a runway and killed five people outside Miami International Airport, members of the county board overseeing that facility are considering whether to spend big on a potential safety upgrade. — Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 9 Sep. 2026

EuroHPC is overseeing the implementation of 19 AI Factories and 13 AI Factory Antennas across Europe, while also developing a European quantum-computing infrastructure that will integrate quantum technologies with conventional supercomputers. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 9 Sep. 2026

So will native reptiles, plants, fish and insects, said Vladimir Roosevelt, Pantheon's operations director, who's overseeing the restoration. — ABC News, 9 Sep. 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