over·ture
ˈō-vər-ˌchu̇r 
ˈō-və-,
-chər,
-ˌtyu̇r,
-ˌtu̇r
overtured; overturing
Synonyms
Examples of overture in a Sentence
Noun
The government has made a significant peace overture by opening the door to negotiation.
the parade down Main Street served as the overture for a weekend of fun and festivities
Recent Examples on the Web
Hannah Dreyfus, The Arizona Republic, 25 Jan. 2024
The overture to Musk, whose business empire includes SpaceX, Tesla and the social networking site X, did not lead to a deal.
—Jonathan O'Connell, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024
The songs, which include his first full track in Spanish, are intended as an overture to his new album out later this year.
—Kyle Eustice, SPIN, 20 Mar. 2024
Generous incentives After an initial overture failed to attract chip companies, the government upped its ante.
—IEEE Spectrum, 6 Mar. 2024
Impressed by Adams’ diplomatic overtures, Ieyasu ignored the advice of Portuguese Jesuit missionaries who urged him to execute the Protestant interloper.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2024
Our first glimpse of Samet, a tiny speck trudging across a blinding-white landscape, is a typical Ceylan overture: a lone figure dwarfed, spectacularly, by a terrain that reflects his inner desolation.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2024
The overture happened around the time executives from Apple and Masimo met in 2013, a moment that has become another focal point in the dispute between the two companies.
—Mark Gurman, Fortune, 27 Dec. 2023
Throughout 2022 Finkelstein had turned to several swashbuckling editors to lead the site courting former Vanity Fair and New Yorker editor Tina Brown, former Us Weekly and THR editor Janice Min and former Cosmopolitan editor in chief Joanna Coles who all turned down his overtures.
—Lachlan Cartwright, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Feb. 2024
Noun
Months before it was announced, UA President Robert Robbins was making plans for dinner at his home to discuss the deal with executives of the online university's managing company, one of several overtures between the leaders.
—Hannah Dreyfus, The Arizona Republic, 25 Jan. 2024
The overture to Musk, whose business empire includes SpaceX, Tesla and the social networking site X, did not lead to a deal.
—Jonathan O'Connell, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024
The songs, which include his first full track in Spanish, are intended as an overture to his new album out later this year.
—Kyle Eustice, SPIN, 20 Mar. 2024
Generous incentives After an initial overture failed to attract chip companies, the government upped its ante.
—IEEE Spectrum, 6 Mar. 2024
Impressed by Adams’ diplomatic overtures, Ieyasu ignored the advice of Portuguese Jesuit missionaries who urged him to execute the Protestant interloper.
—Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2024
Our first glimpse of Samet, a tiny speck trudging across a blinding-white landscape, is a typical Ceylan overture: a lone figure dwarfed, spectacularly, by a terrain that reflects his inner desolation.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2024
The overture happened around the time executives from Apple and Masimo met in 2013, a moment that has become another focal point in the dispute between the two companies.
—Mark Gurman, Fortune, 27 Dec. 2023
Throughout 2022 Finkelstein had turned to several swashbuckling editors to lead the site courting former Vanity Fair and New Yorker editor Tina Brown, former Us Weekly and THR editor Janice Min and former Cosmopolitan editor in chief Joanna Coles who all turned down his overtures.
—Lachlan Cartwright, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'overture.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Overture.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/overture. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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