as in caught
to move fast enough to get even with
she had to hurry to overtake her friends, who had forgotten their umbrellas the thunderstorm overtook them suddenly
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Recent Examples of overtaken
In the moment, Chefetz, co-creator Ruth Efroni and their collaborators can situate us firmly in the early hours of that terrible day, when holiday preparations for Simchat Torah were overtaken by questions of basic survival.
—
Alison Herman, Variety, 7 Oct. 2025
Seventeen years is pretty old for a bourbon, but in this case the whiskey is not overtaken by bitter tannic oak notes.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 5 Oct. 2025
By late afternoon, sunshine had overtaken the high peaks and valleys in this corner of Southern Appalachia — a far cry from the chaos and destruction exactly one year ago.
—Garret K. Woodward, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2025
Unfortunately, the wunderkind narrative that would have otherwise worked for the 27-year-old Anderson was instead overtaken by the wunderkind narrative around Southie besties Damon and Affleck for Good Will Hunting.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 4 Oct. 2025
In contrast, Lippmann’s painstaking technique was already being overtaken by faster photographic processes.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 2 Oct. 2025
That calmness, however, was soon overtaken by the kitchen, with the hiss of the pans, stir of the pots and sharp calls exchanged between cooks quickly filling the air, along with the sounds of an upbeat Peruvian song playing in the background.
—Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2025
The earnestness and sincerity that characterized so much music from the late ’90s were overtaken by the sneering rage of nu metal.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
Apparently, nurture and culture had overtaken my cosmic nature.
—Jessie Rosen, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
Alison Herman, Variety, 7 Oct. 2025
Seventeen years is pretty old for a bourbon, but in this case the whiskey is not overtaken by bitter tannic oak notes.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 5 Oct. 2025
By late afternoon, sunshine had overtaken the high peaks and valleys in this corner of Southern Appalachia — a far cry from the chaos and destruction exactly one year ago.
—Garret K. Woodward, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2025
Unfortunately, the wunderkind narrative that would have otherwise worked for the 27-year-old Anderson was instead overtaken by the wunderkind narrative around Southie besties Damon and Affleck for Good Will Hunting.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 4 Oct. 2025
In contrast, Lippmann’s painstaking technique was already being overtaken by faster photographic processes.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 2 Oct. 2025
That calmness, however, was soon overtaken by the kitchen, with the hiss of the pans, stir of the pots and sharp calls exchanged between cooks quickly filling the air, along with the sounds of an upbeat Peruvian song playing in the background.
—Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2025
The earnestness and sincerity that characterized so much music from the late ’90s were overtaken by the sneering rage of nu metal.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
Apparently, nurture and culture had overtaken my cosmic nature.
—Jessie Rosen, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overtaken
Verb
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The deal has caught the eye of equity analyst Jonathan Hurn.—
Tasmin Lockwood,
CNBC,
1 Oct. 2025
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According to authorities Gibson allowed his large dogs to roam freely in the neighborhood and a neighbor’s ring camera caught footage moments after the alleged atatck.—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Will Brennan hit a ball deep to right field and Pérez chased it down, but couldn’t get to it.—
Ryan Ford,
Freep.com,
6 Oct. 2025
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As Leo chased Genesis around the kitchen, Rosalba and her mother prepared lunch—a delicious meal of chicken cooked in a broth of cinnamon, clove, laurel, and sour orange.—
Simon Willis,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Overtaken.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overtaken. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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