1
as in overlapping
to lie over parts of one another
the puzzle pieces overlay one another in complete disarray on the floor
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in coating
to form a layer over
there will be freezing rain tonight, so we can expect to find a thick layer of ice overlying the car windshield in the morning
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in overlaying
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of overlying
Emma R. Hasson, Scientific American, 17 Aug. 2025
Noun
Earth’s substantial atmosphere and geomagnetic field block most (but not all) of this bombardment, and the sunless interiors of worlds without these properties still get protection from overlying material.
—Emma R. Hasson, Scientific American, 17 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overlying
Verb
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Once those long reads are obtained, powerful bioinformatics software is used to build longer stretches of contiguous sequence by overlapping reads that share the same sequence of bases.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Unfortunately, Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith have somewhat overlapping skillsets.—
Mike DeFabo,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In this recipe, country music star Lainey Wilson draws on her Louisiana roots, rolling the regional sausage into balls before coating them in breadcrumbs and frying until crispy on the outside, but still tender inside.—
Alana Al-Hatlani,
Southern Living,
1 Oct. 2025
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If Paulson's meltdown about Merrick Garland wasn't cringey enough, Peters coating his face in Cheeto dust and rattling off the President's worst one-liners sure was.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Welcome to Path to Playoff, the USA TODAY Sports newsletter covering all things college football and the chase for this year's national championship.—
Erick Smith,
USA Today,
29 Sep. 2025
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Turnstile bassist Franz Lyons can also be seen covering his eyes and running towards the back of the stage.—
Walden Green,
Pitchfork,
28 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Podlesí is notorious for its boring atmosphere, overlaying everything like a thick blanket.—
Zuzana Říhová,
Literary Hub,
26 Sep. 2025
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Last year at Connect, Meta unveiled its Orion glasses, which are a prototype capable of overlaying complex 3D visuals onto the physical world.—
Jonathan Vanian,
CNBC,
20 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overlying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overlying. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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