over

 

 over on Wikipedia

• o'er (adverb, preposition)

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈəʊ.və(ɹ)/
• (US) enPR: ō'vər, IPA^(key): /ˈoʊ.vɚ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊvə(ɹ)
• Hyphenation: o‧ver

From Middle English over, from Old English ofer, from Proto-West Germanic *obar, from Proto-Germanic *uber (“over”), from Proto-Indo-European *upér, a comparative form of *upo.

Akin to Dutch over, German ober, über, Danish over, Norwegian over, Swedish över, Icelandic yfir, Faroese yvir, Gothic 𐌿𐍆𐌰𐍂 (ufar), Latin super, Ancient Greek ὑπέρ (hupér), Albanian upri (“group of peasants”), Sanskrit उपरि (upári). Doublet of uber, super, and hyper.

over (not comparable)

1. Finished; ended; concluded.

   The show isn't over until the fat lady sings.

   The strawberries are over now. I picked the last few yesterday.

   1. (botany) Of a flower: wilting or withering.
2. (informal, of an ongoing situation) Hopeless; irrecoverable.

   We're keeping our marriage going for the sake of the kids, but really it's over.

3. (informal) Visiting one's home or other location.

   My sister's over for the week.

4. Having surmounted an obstacle.

   The horse struggled at that fence, but it's over.

5. (informal) Having an excess in a particular respect.

   This steak is well over. (overcooked)

   We had some complaints about short weight, so now we make sure that all our bags of potatoes are a bit over. (overweight)

6. Surplus to requirements.

   I made 20 cakes, but I only need 18, so there are two over.

7. (professional wrestling slang) Of a wrestler: generating a reaction from fans.

Not normally used attributively (before a noun). (Attributive use occurs rarely in informal language, e.g. "an over relationship".)

"Over" as a first element in British place names can mean "upper" or "higher", apparently from Old English ufera or uferra.

• game over
• overness

over (not comparable)

1. Describing a physical change of position or state.
   1. From one position or location to another, horizontally or approximately so, or along a route visualised as "across".

      That vase isn't exactly central. Could you move it over a couple of inches?

      I slid over to make room for him to sit down.

      Please pass the chocolates over to me.

      "Come over to my house and play!" — "Sure, I'll bring over a pizza."

      He's driven over from Bristol.

      In the future, when space travel is affordable to everyone, we'll be able to pop over to the Moon for a weekend.

   2. Across from one side of something to the other.

      I need to cross the river. Can you take me over in your boat?

   3. So as to pass above.

      I looked up just as a helicopter flew over.

   4. Up one side of something, across, and then down the other side.

      The fence is too high. I don't think I'll be able to get over.

      The boiling milk bubbled over onto the cooker top.

   5. Across something, such as an edge, and then downwards.

      The car rolled to the edge of the cliff and went straight over.

   6. From an upright position to a horizontal one.

      He tipped the bottle over, and the water came gushing out.

      That building just fell over!

   7. So as to fold towards or onto itself.

      Bend the end of that wire over to make a hook.

      He bent over to touch his toes.

      The leaves have curled over.

   8. On top of something, or so as to cover something.

      Paint it over with a darker colour.

      It's starting to cloud over.

   9. So as to reverse up/down orientation, or otherwise change orientation by rotating.

      Put the card face down, and don't turn it over until I say so.

      I can't sleep on my back. I have to roll over onto my side.

   10. So as to reverse or exchange position(s) .

       Swap those cables over. The red one should be in the left socket.

2. Expressing figurative movement from one position or state across to another.

   He came over to our way of thinking on the new project.

   I switched over to Channel 9.

   I signed the property over to him.

   This advertisement doesn't clearly get the idea over.

3. Indicating a direction or location away from the speaker, usually roughly horizontally or visualised as such

   I'll see you over at the club.

   Look over there!

4. Thoroughly; completely; from beginning to end.

   Let's talk over the project at tomorrow's meeting.

   Let me think that over.

   I'm going to look over our department's expenses.

   • 1661, John Fell, The Life of the most learned, reverend and pious Dr. H. Hammond‎^[1]:

     During the whole time of his abode in the university he generally spent thirteen hours of the day in study; by which assiduity besides an exact dispatch of the whole course of philosophy, he read over in a manner all classic authors that are extant […]

5. (often in compounds) To a high or excessive degree; overly; see also over-.

   I'm not over bothered about going to the party.

   If you're over tentative then you'll get nowhere.

   • 1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 12, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 158:

     She seemed a placid creature altogether - eminently respectable - perhaps not over intelligent.

6. Beyond or in excess of what is correct or expected.

   The show ran ten minutes over.

   We tried to stick to budget, but in the end we went twenty dollars over.

7. To a future time.

   Carry the shortfall over and we'll make it up tomorrow.

8. Overnight (throughout the night).

   We missed the last bus home so we stayed over.

   Can I sleep over?

9. Indicating repetition.
   1. (US, usually with do) Again; another time; once more; over again.

      I lost my paper and I had to do the entire assignment over.

   2. Used for rhetorical effect to reinforce that something was done the stated number of times.

      I said the magic word three times over, and the secret door slid open.

10. See also individual entries for phrasal verbs: go over, hand over, run over, take over, win over, etc.

When used in the sense "from one location to another", over implies that the two places are at approximately the same height or the height difference is not relevant. For example, if two offices are on the same floor of a building, an office worker might say I'll bring that over for you, while if the offices were on different floors, the sentence would likely be I'll bring that up [down] for you. However, distances are not constrained, e.g. He came over from England last year and now lives in Los Angeles or I moved the stapler over to the other side of my desk.

• all over
• leftover

over (plural overs)

1. (cricket) A set of six legal balls bowled.

   Jones hit four boundaries in the first over.

   • 2019 July 14, Stephan Shemilt, “England win Cricket World Cup: Ben Stokes stars in dramatic finale against New Zealand”, in BBC Sport‎^[2], London:

     In an emotional and electric atmosphere at Lord's, both sides scored 241 in their 50 overs and were level on 15 when they batted for an extra over apiece.

2. Any surplus amount of money, goods delivered, etc.
   • 2008, G. Puttick, Sandy van Esch, The Principles and Practice of Auditing, page 609:

     […] standard cash count forms used to record the count and any overs or unders.

3. (informal) Something having an excess of a particular property.

   I went fishing but caught mostly overs. (oversized fish)

   In today's golf tournament we recorded three unders and twenty overs. (golf rounds over par)

4. (gambling) A bet that a particular sporting statistic, such a points scored in a game, will be above a certain stated value.

over

1. Expressing spatial relationship or movement.
   1. Above; higher than; further up than.

      Hold the sign up over your head.

      The mountain towered over the village.

      • 1858 October 16, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “The Courtship of Miles Standish”, in The Courtship of Miles Standish, and Other Poems, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor and Fields, →OCLC:

        Over them gleamed far off the crimson banners of morning.

      • 2013 September-October, Henry Petroski, “The Evolution of Eyeglasses”, in American Scientist:

        The ability of a segment of a glass sphere to magnify whatever is placed before it was known around the year 1000, when the spherical segment was called a reading stone, […] . Scribes, illuminators, and scholars held such stones directly over manuscript pages as an aid in seeing what was being written, drawn, or read.

   2. Across, from one side to the other.

      The guide took us over the border.

   3. Across, so as to pass above.

      The vulture flew over the desert.

      I looked out over the sea.

      • 1918, Dora Sigerson Shorter, Sick I Am and Sorrowful:

        If I saw the wild geese fly over the dark lakes of Kerry...

   4. Through or around all the parts of.

      The estate agent showed me over the property.

      We went over the cathedral and then had lunch in the cafe.

      (figuratively) We went over the figures together.

   5. On the other side of.

      He lives over the road from me.

      The next town is over that hill.

   6. (informal, for 'over at/in/on') At or near (a location seen as 'across' from the speaker's location).

      There was a big fire over the other side of town.

      • 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter III, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:

        My hopes wa'n't disappointed. I never saw clams thicker than they was along them inshore flats. I filled my dreener in no time, and then it come to me that 'twouldn't be a bad idee to get a lot more, take 'em with me to Wellmouth, and peddle 'em out. Clams was fairly scarce over that side of the bay and ought to fetch a fair price.

   7. From one physical position to another via an obstacle that must be traversed vertically, first upwards and then downwards.

      The dog jumped over the fence.

      Let's walk over the hill to get there.

      The lava bubbled up and over the rim of the crater.

   8. Across (something) and then downwards.

      The car drove straight over the edge of the cliff.

      I tripped over a tree root.

   9. On top of; in such a way as to cover.

      Drape the fabric over the table.

      There is a roof over the house.

      (figuratively) A strange feeling came over me.

2. Expressing comparison.
   1. More than (a given value, amount, limit etc.); beyond; past; exceeding.

      He is over a hundred years old.

      It's over a hundred degrees outside.

      I think I’m over my limit for calories for today.

   2. To a greater degree than.

      I prefer the purple over the pink.

   3. (in certain collocations) As compared to.

      Sales are down this quarter over last.

3. During or throughout (a time period).

   He's got grumpier over the years.

   I'll have to work over the weekend.

   • 2013 June 29, “A punch in the gut”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, pages 72–3:

     Mostly, the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however, has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism.

4. Through or via (a particular transmission medium).

   A stern voice boomed over the loudspeaker.

   The message came over FM radio.

5. Indicating relative status, authority, or power

   The owner's son lorded it over the experienced managers.

   The prince ruled over a portion of the kingdom.

6. In a position of having overcome (a problem or issue); past; finished with; from one state to another via a hindrance that must be solved or defeated; or via a third state that represents a significant difference from the first two.

   We got over the engineering problems and the prototype works great.

   I am over my cold and feel great again.

   I know the referee made a bad call, but you have to get over it [your annoyance with the referee's decision].

   She is finally over [the distress of] losing her job.

   He is finally over his [distress over the loss of the relationship with his] ex-girlfriend.

7. While doing an activity involving (something), especially while consuming.

   We had a chat over dinner.

   He fell asleep over the crossword puzle.

   • 1990, Seymour Chatman, Coming to Terms‎^[3], Cornell, →ISBN, page 100:

     Six diners in business clothes—five attractive young women and a balding middle-aged man—relax over cigarettes.

   • 1998, Marian Swerdlow, Underground Woman‎^[4], Temple, →ISBN, page 88:

     Sunday had been my favorite day at Woodlawn. A long W.A.A. [="work as assigned" period], having coffee and croissants with Mark over the Sunday Times.

   • 2009, Sara Pennypacker, The Great Egyptian Grave Robbery, Scholastic, →ISBN, page 79:

     Over meatloaf and mashed potatoes (being careful not to talk with his mouth full), Stanley told about his adventure.

8. Concerning or regarding.

   The two boys had a fight over whose girlfriend was the best.

   • 2013 August 10, “Can China clean up fast enough?”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848:

     It has jailed environmental activists and is planning to limit the power of judicial oversight by handing a state-approved body a monopoly over bringing environmental lawsuits.

9. Above, implying superiority after a contest; in spite of; notwithstanding.

   We triumphed over difficulties.

   The bill was passed over the veto.

   It was a fine victory over their opponents.

   I can't hear you over the noise of that road drill.

10. Expressing causation: due to, as the result of.

    He was fired over that.

    • 2024 May 24, “[5]”, in Financial Review:

      Microsoft CEO should be fired over cyber failure

11. (mathematics) Divided by.

    Synonym: (uncommon) on

    Two over six equals one over three.

12. (poker) Separates the three of a kind from the pair in a full house.

    9♦9♠9♣6♥6♠ = nines over sixes

• all over
• ride roughshod over

over

1. (procedure word, military) A radio procedure word meaning that the station is finished with its transmission and is expecting a response.

   Bravo Six, this is Bravo Six Four. Stand by for ten mike report one dash three, over.

   Bravo Six Four, this is Bravo Six Actual. Send your traffic, over.

   How do you receive? Over!

2. Instructs the reader to turn the page and continue reading the other side.
3. (obsolete, slang) Short for over the left shoulder (“expressing disbelief etc.”).

• (radio procedure word): out

• (radio procedure word): over and out

over (third-person singular simple present overs, present participle overing, simple past and past participle overed)

1. (UK, transitive, dialect, obsolete) To go over, or jump over.

   He overed the fence in good style.

2. (UK, intransitive, dialect, obsolete) To run about.

   The cattle have been overing all day because of the flies.

• Andrea Tyler and Vyvyan Evans, "The semantic network for over", in The Semantics of English Prepositions: Spatial Scenes, Embodied Meaning and Cognition, Cambridge University Press, 2003, 0-521-81430 8

From Middle English over (“riverbank, seashore, brink”), from Old English ōfer (“riverbank, seashore, brink, edge, margin, border”), from Proto-Germanic *ōferaz. Cognate with Dutch oever (“riverbank, shore”), German Ufer (“shore, shoreline, riverbank”), Low German Över (“shore, riverbank”).

over (plural overs)

1. (rare, dialectal or obsolete) A shore, riverbank.

   The sea's over.

   • 1338, Robert Mannyng, Mannyng's Chronicle:

     Cassibola was ready at Dover, & renged (encamped) his men by the over.

Now mostly found in place names, as in Westover or Overton, Hampshire (a town built on the River Test). Fell out of use in the 16th century.

• A Concise Anglo-Saxon Dictionary
• The Middle English Dictionary

• -vore, Vore, rove, vore

From English over. Compare Japanese オーバー (ōbā).

This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some! Particularly: “Mandarin”

over

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese, Taiwanese Mandarin) over the top; extreme; overdone

over

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese, Taiwanese Mandarin) to go too far; to exceed; to go overboard
2. (Taiwanese Mandarin) to game over; to fail

From Old Norse yfir.

over

1. above

   Skyer hænger over byen.

   Clouds hang above the city.

2. past an hour

   Klokken er fjorten minutter over sytten.

   It's fourteen minutes past five p.m.

From Old Norse ofar.

over

1. across

   Han kom over grænsen.

   He got across the border.

2. asunder; in two

   Vil du skære bollen over? ― Would you cut the bun in two?

Shortening of overkrydder.

over c (singular definite overen, plural indefinite overe)

1. (informal) The upper curved portion of a roll or a similar food.

   Jeg foretrækker overen.

   I prefer the top slice.

• under

• overkrydder

Borrowed from English over.

over c (singular definite overen, plural indefinite overe or overs)

1. (cricket) A set of six legal balls bowled, an over.

• “over” in Den Danske Ordbog
• “over,2” in Den Danske Ordbog
• “over,3” in Den Danske Ordbog
• “over,4” in Den Danske Ordbog

From Middle Dutch ōver, from Old Dutch *ovar, from Proto-West Germanic *obar, from Proto-Germanic *uber, from Proto-Indo-European *upér, from *upo. Compare German ober, English over.

• IPA^(key): /ˈoː.vər/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: over
• Rhymes: -oːvər

over

1. over, above
2. (postpositional) over (implying motion)

   Kijk uit, er steekt een hond de straat over.

   Look out, a dog is crossing over the street.

3. remaining, left over

   Na het feest was er bijna geen eten meer over.

   After the party there was barely any food remaining.

4. passing by, going away

   De pijn gaat weer over.

   The pain is going away again.

5. denotes an imitative action; again, once again

   Ik schrijf je brief over.

   I will transcribe your letter.

• (antonym(s) of “over”): onder

• over-

• → Indonesian: oper

over

1. over
2. about, concerning

• overheen

• Afrikaans: oor
• Berbice Creole Dutch: ofru
• Javindo: ofer
• Jersey Dutch: ôver
• Negerhollands: over, aobu, obu, ovoor
• Skepi Creole Dutch: over, ofer
• → Caribbean Javanese: oper, ngoper
• → Papiamentu: ofer, over

over

1. (procedure word, military) over (a radio procedure word meaning that the station is finished with its transmission and is expecting a response.)

• over en uit
• over, uit en sluiten maar

• rove, Voer, voer

Unadapted borrowing from Dutch over. Doublet of oper.

over

1. passing by, going away

   Synonym: lewat

over

1. Alternative spelling of oper

• “over” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

over

1. first-person singular present passive subjunctive of ovō

From Old Dutch over, from Proto-West Germanic *obar.

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔːvər/

ōver

1. over, above

   Antonym: onder

2. across
3. towards
4. during
5. ago, some duration in the past
6. after, following (a duration)
7. about, concerning
8. due to, because of

• Dutch: over
  • → Indonesian: oper
• Limburgish: euver

ōver

1. over
2. across, on the other side
3. plenty, more than enough
4. used up, finished
5. once again

• Dutch: over
• Limburgish: euver

• “over (II)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• “over (III)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “over (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I

• ouver, ower, ove
• ofer, offr (Early Middle English)
• our, owr (chiefly northern)

From Old English ofer, from Proto-West Germanic *obar.

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔːvər/, /ˈɔvər/

over

1. above

• English: over
• Geordie English: ower
• Scots: ower
• Yola: ower, oer, owr

• “ō̆ver, prep.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

From Old Saxon ovar, from Proto-West Germanic *obar, from Proto-Germanic *uber, and Old Saxon *uvir from Proto-Germanic *ubiri.

• Stem vowel: ō² or ȫ¹ or ȫ²
  • (originally) IPA^(key): /ʊɒvər/, /ʏəvər/, /ʏœvər/

ōver or ȫver

1. (accusative) across, moving through or over something

   over dat rode mêr - across the Red Sea

2. (accusative) across, moving to the other side of something
3. (accusative) in, across, describing the spread of something

   over alle lant - all across the lands / in every land

4. (dative) across, situated on the other side of

   over deme watere - across the water

5. (dative) while, over the duration of

   over deme werke begripen - while working on something

6. (dative) over, at, on, on top of, describing where something is situated; does not mean above

   over deme dische - at the table

It is not clear whether the umlaut was connected with semantic differences.

• aver

• (antonym(s) of “over”): under

ōver or ȫver

1. across, on the other side
2. while
3. on top of, additionally
4. over (finished, ceased)

It is not clear whether the umlaut was connected with semantic differences.

• aver

• (antonym(s) of “over”): under

From Old Norse yfir.

• IPA^(key): /ˈoːʋəɾ/

over

1. above
2. past
3. over; more than

over

1. over
2. across

• “over” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From Old Norse yfir.

• IPA^(key): /ˈoːʋɛr/, /ˈoːʋər/

over

1. above
2. past
3. over; more than

over

1. over
2. across

• “over” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

over

1. opposite