surmount
verb
sur·mount
sər-ˈmau̇nt 
surmounted; surmounting; surmounts
1
: to prevail over : overcome
surmount an obstacle
2
: to get to the top of : climb
3
: to stand or lie at the top of
4
obsolete
: to surpass in quality or attainment : excel
Did you know?
Our verb mount, meaning "ascend, get up onto", comes from the same Latin root as mountain, and we keep those images in mind when using surmount, since climbing up or over a mountain is a symbol of achievement. The word almost always refers to human effort, and almost always in a positive way; thus, we speak of surmounting difficulties, surmounting problems, surmounting hurdles, surmounting handicaps—you get the idea.
Examples of surmount in a Sentence
an Olympic swimmer who surmounted endless obstacles to achieve her goals
Recent Examples on the Web
Budget hawks are saying this sets up a tax cliff in the legislation similar to the one Republicans are now trying to surmount, since most of the 2017 Trump tax cuts expire at the end of this year.
—
Aris Folley, The Hill, 12 June 2025
Raise the stakes, place insuperable obstacles before the protagonist, have the protagonist somehow surmount them while becoming braver and better.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
But the countries have significant issues to surmount before higher tariffs are set to snap back into effect between them in early August.
—Alan Rappeport, New York Times, 20 May 2025
Those who want to surmount this challenge need to build systems that can treat trust as the default instead of the reward for perfect compliance.
—Alexander Puutio, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for surmount
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Aris Folley, The Hill, 12 June 2025
Raise the stakes, place insuperable obstacles before the protagonist, have the protagonist somehow surmount them while becoming braver and better.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
But the countries have significant issues to surmount before higher tariffs are set to snap back into effect between them in early August.
—Alan Rappeport, New York Times, 20 May 2025
Those who want to surmount this challenge need to build systems that can treat trust as the default instead of the reward for perfect compliance.
—Alexander Puutio, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for surmount
Cite this Entry
“Surmount.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surmount. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
surmount
verb
sur·mount
sər-ˈmau̇nt
1
: overcome sense 1
surmount an obstacle
2
: to get to the top of : climb
3
: to stand or lie at the top of : crown
a weather vane surmounts the roof
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