overlay
1 Americanverb (used with object)
noun
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something laid over something else; covering.
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a layer or decoration of something applied.
an overlay of gold.
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Printing.
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a shaped piece of paper, or a sheet of paper reinforced at the proper places by shaped pieces, put on the tympan of a press to increase or equalize the impression.
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a method of preparing copy for multicolor printing, in which matter for each color is prepared on a transparent sheet that is placed over a key plate, usually the one to be printed in black.
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the sheet or sheets so prepared.
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a sheet of transparent paper placed over a photograph, a dummy, or other artwork for noting corrections, instructions, mechanical separations, etc.
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Computers. software or data in external storage and brought into main storage for execution by replacing or augmenting software or data already there.
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a transparent sheet giving special military information not ordinarily shown on maps, used by being placed over the map on which it is based.
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a decorative piece of leather or other material stitched on a shoe.
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Scot. a cravat.
verb
verb
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to lay or place something over or upon (something else)
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(often foll by with) to cover, overspread, or conceal (with)
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(foll by with) to cover (a surface) with an applied decoration
ebony overlaid with silver
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to achieve the correct printing pressure all over (a forme or plate) by adding to the appropriate areas of the packing
noun
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something that is laid over something else; covering
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an applied decoration or layer, as of gold leaf
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a transparent sheet giving extra details to a map or diagram over which it is designed to be placed
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printing material, such as paper, used to overlay a forme or plate
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of overlay
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at over-, lay 1
Explanation
To overlay is to cover with a coating or a layer, or to set one thing on top of another. A winter storm will sometimes overlay a dangerously slick coating of ice on top of the road. An artist might overlay a ceramic object with gold, or overlay one piece of paper on another in a collage. The layer itself, whether it's clear plastic or cement or silver, is also called an overlay. Another kind of overlay, dating from the 1930s, is the transparent sheet of paper in a book that covers a map or other full-page illustration.
Vocabulary lists containing overlay
"The Pale Mare" and "Caged Bird"
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Beyond the Bright Sea
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Loser
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A series of colorful circles overlay Lee’s ink sketches.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2026
Its asset quality remains at cycle-best levels with creation of prudential overlay of around INR2.17 billion in 4Q FY2026 amid macroeconomic uncertainties rather than underlying stress, the analysts say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026
But a digital forensics expert told AFP's fact-checkers that the anomaly was the result of a failed text overlay by a news station that had syndicated the official feed.
From Barron's ● Apr. 11, 2026
"I noticed that the brick was a very pink-cast brick, and it had a little bit of a charcoal overlay on it. It was a modular eight-inch brick and it was square-edged," he says.
From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2026
There are only a few to be seen from here, scattered dots representing the rest of the Milky Way, invisible without a virtual overlay.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
Augmented reality is a technology that overlays digital displays against real-world surroundings.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026
Investors should use fundamental overlays when buying laggards and avoid selling strong momentum tech stocks, Parker advises.
From Barron's ● Mar. 26, 2026
There are HOA rules, local municipal codes, environmental overlays and restrictions that could govern exactly what you can do to your trees.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 4, 2026
Then, with what it deduces about an individual's personality, the AI overlays that on top of what advertisers already know about people.
From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2025
I stare at the overlays on the tinted windows, currently showing an empty car interior so that no one will be able to see us both inside.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
Text reading “Polymarket funds my life” overlaid another video of her dancing on a beach by the Golden Gate Bridge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
Each has an episode named for him — as with “Adolescence” it’s a four-part show — the overlaid shifting focus fitting quite well into the novel’s chronology.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026
An Instagram post on March 7 from Dubai’s official tourism account featured slick visuals of the emirate’s landmark high-rise buildings overlaid with a catchy pop-soundtrack that declares: “Dubai is still the safest place on Earth.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026
It then overlaid a valuation screen on its score card, and came up with four names.
From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026
He went, his face overlaid with shame and misery.
From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya
Augmented reality involves overlaying digital objects onto a person’s view of the physical world.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
His debut ad felt like an Aquaman trailer, the veteran and oyster farmer’s basso profondo voice overlaying scenes of him in wet suits, splitting wood, piloting a boat, flying the flag, swinging a kettlebell.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 19, 2026
TikTok users often take part in trends by using the audio of popular videos and overlaying it with their own clips.
From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2024
A material like amber is formed over tens of thousands of years, when the heat and pressure of overlaying sediment causes a complex chemical reaction resulting in the resin-like stone.
From Slate ● Apr. 27, 2024
And overlaying all of this was the history of Howard itself.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
