overtakes

Definition of overtakesnext
present tense third-person singular of overtake
as in catches
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of overtakes As regenerative agriculture overtakes traditional organic labels in popularity, Lewkowitz highlighted the unique challenges American growers face. Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 27 Apr. 2026 That way, no plant overtakes another. Tessa Cooper, The Spruce, 17 Apr. 2026 If hairy bittercress overtakes your lawn, mow frequently in early spring to remove as many flowers as possible. Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 11 Apr. 2026 The convergence of Iowa State fans to Power & Light or the sea of blue that overtakes downtown this week or the plethora of NBA general managers in the front rows offered enough of a reminder that Kansas City didn’t need. Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 13 Mar. 2026 Paranoia overtakes several players who vie for protection. Tiney Ricciardi, Denver Post, 3 Mar. 2026 When exhaustion overtakes them, something more sinister comes creeping from the shadows. Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 15 Feb. 2026 Afterward, Agnes and I were felled by the kind of hunger that overtakes only those who have exerted themselves in cold weather. Boris Fishman, Travel + Leisure, 8 Feb. 2026 The show overtakes confrontation, less as a strategy than as a compromise no one remembers agreeing to. Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for overtakes
Verb
  • Power—the explosive, fast-twitch capacity that catches you mid-fall—goes first.
    Angela Haupt, Time, 15 May 2026
  • All this will come to the fore when Apple eventually sorts out its own AI strategy and catches iPhone up with other platforms.
    Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
Verb
  • Jordan Spieth chases a career Grand Slam.
    Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 14 May 2026
  • Video of the incident shows the boy trying to scramble up the bank to safety as the beaver chases him before biting him on the thigh.
    Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 7 May 2026
Verb
  • And if New York reaches the NBA Finals, the challenge could become either the Oklahoma City Thunder frontcourt of Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren, or Victor Wembanyama in an NBA Cup Final rematch.
    Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 16 May 2026
  • Even the artists whose work all this machinery is supposedly serving no longer have a reliable way to know what real audiences actually want, since whatever feedback reaches them may already have passed through the same apparatus built to distort that feedback in the first place.
    Lane Brown, Vulture, 15 May 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Overtakes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/overtakes. Accessed 18 May. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on overtakes

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster