overtake

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: B2 — Upper-Intermediate

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. verb catch up with and possibly overtake
  2. verb travel past
  3. verb overcome, as with emotions or perceptual stimuli

Etymology

From Middle English overtaken, likely a replacement alteration (as the Middle English verb taken replaced nimen (“to take”)), of Middle English overnimen (“to overtake”), from Old English oferniman (“to take by surprise, overtake”), equivalent to over- + take.

In classic literature

Synonyms

catch, catch up with

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