oversight

noun over·sight \ ˈō-vər-ˌsīt \

|Updated on: 12 Aug 2018

Examples: oversight in a Sentence

Definition of oversight

1 a : watchful and responsible care

you to whom oversight of the University is entrusted
—N. M. Pusey

b : regulatory supervision

congressional oversight

The new manager was given oversight of the project.

2 : an inadvertent omission or error

whether by oversight or intention
—G. B. Shaw

The error was a simple oversight.

See oversight defined for English-language learners

See oversight defined for kids

Examples of oversight in a Sentence

The fact that you didn't get an invitation is surely just an oversight.
The error was a simple oversight.
The new manager was given oversight of the project.

Recent Examples of oversight from the Web

In 2015, amid the ongoing stretch of rising water levels in the Great Lakes, the control board implemented a modified regulatory plan that allows it to make small deviations to the amount of water released from Lake Superior without oversight.

— tony briscoe, chicagotribune.com, "What happens when Lake Superior has too much water? It dumps it into an already overflowing Lake Michigan," 13 July 2018
The university also plans to hire additional staff to assist other Temple schools with data collection and oversight.

— kelsey gee, WSJ, "Temple University Fires a Dean Over Falsified M.B.A. Rankings Data," 13 July 2018
The hearing exposed clear partisan divides in the House judiciary and oversight committees, as Democrats accused Republicans of trying to divert attention from Trump's ties to Russia through an excessive focus on Strzok.

— author: eric tucker, mary clare jalonick, Anchorage Daily News, "FBI agent clashes with GOP at hearing on Russia probe," 13 July 2018
The hearing comes as congressional investigators continue to probe into Department of Justice and FBI oversight after an internal inspector general report criticized leadership at the top levels during the Clinton investigation.

— CBS News, "FBI's Peter Strzok testifies on anti-Trump bias before House panel -- live updates," 12 July 2018
Ryan has abdicated the oversight function entirely.

— jonathan chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Paul Ryan Unaware Constitution Lets Congress Override Presidential Veto," 12 July 2018
There is, however, no federal oversight of adoptions, either in state or between states, and there is minimal transparency on how the process works.

— joe heim and julie tate, Houston Chronicle, "As Hart children begged for help, system failed them," 12 July 2018
This is a deliberate attempt to knock the best oversight member of Congress off his game the week Strzok is scheduled to testify.

— matthew yglesias, Vox, "Trump’s administration is full of kooks and crooks because it’s led by Donald Trump," 11 July 2018
Refinery29’s Writing Critics’ Wrongs is an attempt to rectify that oversight.

— refinery29.com, "Why Marie Antoinette Is Really Mean Girls, Versailles Edition," 10 July 2018

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

First Known Use of oversight

15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

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oversight Synonyms

Synonyms

blunder, bobble, boo-boo, brick, clinker, error, fault, flub, fluff, fumble, gaff, gaffe, goof, inaccuracy, lapse, miscue, misstep, mistake, screwup, slip, slipup, stumble, trip;

Near Antonyms

accuracy, correctness, exactitude, exactness, preciseness, precision, strictness;

inerrancy, infallibility, perfection;

foul-up, snafu;

misapprehension, miscalculation, miscomprehension, misconception, misconstruction, miscue, misdescription, misimpression, misinterpretation, misjudgment, misreading, misstatement, misunderstanding;

OVERSIGHT Defined for English Language Learners

oversight

noun

Definition of oversight for English Language Learners

: a mistake made because someone forgets or fails to notice something
: the act or job of directing work that is being done

OVERSIGHT Defined for Kids

oversight

noun over·sight \ ˈō-vər-ˌsīt \

Definition of oversight for Students

1 : the act or duty of overseeing : watchful care He was assigned oversight of the project.

2 : an error or something forgotten through carelessness or haste It was surely an oversight that you weren't invited.

Headscratcher for oversight

What do “watchful care” and “careless error” have in common? Though they are opposites they are both meanings of oversight.

Learn More about oversight

See words that rhyme with oversight Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for oversight Spanish Central: Translation of oversight Nglish: Translation of oversight for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of oversight for Arabic speakers

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oversight

Definition of oversight

Examples of oversight in a Sentence

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oversight Synonyms

Synonyms

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OVERSIGHT Defined for English Language Learners

oversight

Definition of oversight for English Language Learners

OVERSIGHT Defined for Kids

oversight

Definition of oversight for Students

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