overlay

¹ American  

[oh-ver-ley, oh-ver-ley] / ˌoʊ vərˈleɪ, ˈoʊ vərˌleɪ /

verb (used with object)

overlaid, overlaying

1. to lay or place (one thing) over or upon another.

2. to cover, overspread, or surmount with something.

3. to finish with a layer or applied decoration of something.

   wood richly overlaid with gold.

4. Printing. to put an overlay upon.

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noun

1. something laid over something else; covering.

2. a layer or decoration of something applied.

   an overlay of gold.

3. Printing.

   1. 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.

   2. 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.

   3. the sheet or sheets so prepared.

4. a sheet of transparent paper placed over a photograph, a dummy, or other artwork for noting corrections, instructions, mechanical separations, etc.

5. Computers. software or data in external storage and brought into main storage for execution by replacing or augmenting software or data already there.

6. a transparent sheet giving special military information not ordinarily shown on maps, used by being placed over the map on which it is based.

7. a decorative piece of leather or other material stitched on a shoe.

8. Scot. a cravat.

overlay ² American  

[oh-ver-ley] / ˌoʊ vərˈleɪ /

verb

1. simple past tense of overlie.

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overlay British  

verb

1. to lay or place something over or upon (something else)

2. (often foll by with) to cover, overspread, or conceal (with)

3. (foll by with) to cover (a surface) with an applied decoration

   ebony overlaid with silver

4. to achieve the correct printing pressure all over (a forme or plate) by adding to the appropriate areas of the packing

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noun

1. something that is laid over something else; covering

2. an applied decoration or layer, as of gold leaf

3. a transparent sheet giving extra details to a map or diagram over which it is designed to be placed

4. printing material, such as paper, used to overlay a forme or plate

Etymology

Origin of overlay

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; over-, lay ¹

Example Sentences

The other is an overlay of orange and yellow splotches on the land.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

BBC Sport has seen a telemetry data overlay of a quick lap from Bahrain with last year's cars compared with one from this year.

From BBC • Feb. 26, 2026

“I m not sure why he was sanctimonious and agressive when detailing the harvey weinstein allegations,” Epstein wrote. “now watching the overlay , its amazing.”

From Salon • Feb. 6, 2026

The near-perfect overlay of the religious image with a political image is a visual synecdoche for the Revolution’s replacement of Christianity with the cults of Nature and Reason.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 21, 2025

She flicked through the rack and pulled out a slipper dress with a chiffon overlay printed with a Qinghua pattern, the blue-white motif of Chinese porcelain.

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

Related Words

• superimpose