OVERCOME (overcame)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

Irregular inflected form: overcame   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does overcome mean? 

• OVERCOME (verb)
  The verb OVERCOME has 4 senses:

1. win a victory over

2. get on top of; deal with successfully

3. overcome, as with emotions or perceptual stimuli

4. overcome, usually through no fault or weakness of the person that is overcome

  Familiarity information: OVERCOME used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• OVERCOME (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they overcome    ... he / she / it overcomes   
Past simple: overcame   
Past participle: overcome   
-ing form: overcoming   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Win a victory over

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Synonyms:

defeat; get the better of; overcome

Context example:

Her anger got the better of her and she blew up

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "overcome"):

beat; beat out; crush; shell; trounce; vanquish (come out better in a competition, race, or conflict)

come through; make it; pull round; pull through; survive (continue in existence after (an adversity, etc.))

conquer (overcome by conquest)

nose (defeat by a narrow margin)

upset (defeat suddenly and unexpectedly)

expel; rout; rout out (cause to flee)

lurch; skunk (defeat by a lurch)

overrun (seize the position of and defeat)

down (bring down or defeat (an opponent))

wallop (defeat soundly and utterly)

demolish; destroy (defeat soundly and humiliatingly)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

The fighter managed to overcome his opponent

Derivation:

overcomer (someone who overcomes and establishes ascendancy and control by force or persuasion)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Get on top of; deal with successfully

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Synonyms:

get over; master; overcome; subdue; surmount

Context example:

He overcame his shyness

Hypernyms (to "overcome" is one way to...):

beat; beat out; crush; shell; trounce; vanquish (come out better in a competition, race, or conflict)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "overcome"):

bulldog (throw a steer by seizing the horns and twisting the neck, as in a rodeo)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 3

Meaning:

Overcome, as with emotions or perceptual stimuli

Classified under:

Verbs of feeling

Synonyms:

overcome; overpower; overtake; overwhelm; sweep over; whelm

Hypernyms (to "overcome" is one way to...):

arouse; elicit; enkindle; evoke; fire; kindle; provoke; raise (call forth (emotions, feelings, and responses))

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "overcome"):

devastate (overwhelm or overpower)

clutch; get hold of; seize (affect)

kill (overwhelm with hilarity, pleasure, or admiration)

benight (overtake with darkness or night)

knock out (overwhelm with admiration)

stagger (astound or overwhelm, as with shock)

lock (hold fast (in a certain state))

Sentence frame:

Something ----s somebody

Sense 4

Meaning:

Overcome, usually through no fault or weakness of the person that is overcome

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Synonyms:

get the best; have the best; overcome

Context example:

Heart disease can get the best of us

Hypernyms (to "overcome" is one way to...):

beat; beat out; crush; shell; trounce; vanquish (come out better in a competition, race, or conflict)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s somebody

Sentence example:

The fighter managed to overcome his opponent

 Context examples 

While photon up-conversion can overcome this limitation, up-converted materials have low efficiency or high toxicity.

(Making higher energy light to fight cancer, National Science Foundation)

He paused, overcome by the consciousness that he had been talking over Ruth's head.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Your own feelings overcame you, and you ran across the lawn and broke in upon them.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

At first he had shown some disposition to assert his own position, but now he was overcome with admiration, and ready to follow without question wherever Holmes led.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

To overcome this problem, scientists developed a technique to perform genetic analysis of the parasite’s mitochondria.

(Human malaria spread from monkeys found in Brazil, SciDev.Net)

Overall the effect of these mutations means that a combination of penicillin and clavulanic acid could overcome the resistance to penicillin in a proportion of MRSA strains.

(Widely-available antibiotics could be used in the treatment of ‘superbug’ MRSA, University of Cambridge)

The fucose-free monoclonal antibodies enhance antigen dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), and increase binding affinity to the Fc Receptor to overcome genetic polymorphism.

(Anti-HB-EGF Monoclonal Antibody KHK2866, NCI Thesaurus)

These findings point to a novel mechanism that could be targeted in the development of new treatments to help the brain overcome glycolysis defects in Alzheimer’s disease.

(Higher brain glucose levels may mean more severe Alzheimer’s, National Institutes of Health)

Lehigh's new biomineralization method shows promise at overcoming these challenges.

(Promising new solar-powered path to hydrogen fuel production, National Science Foundation)

I had almost overcome my pride so far as to go back to the agency and inquire whether the place was still open when I received this letter from the gentleman himself.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)