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overman

American  
[oh-ver-muhn, oh-ver-man, oh-ver-man] / ˈoʊ vər mən, ˈoʊ vərˌmæn, ˌoʊ vərˈmæn /

noun

  • overmen
    plural
  1. a foreman, supervisor, or overseer.

  2. a superman.


verb (used with object)

  • overmans,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • overmanned,
    past participle,  past
  • overmanning
    present participle
  1. to oversupply with men, especially for service.

    Indiscriminate hiring had overmanned the factory.

overman British  

verb

  1. (tr) to supply with an excessive number of men

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a man who oversees others

  2. the Nietzschean superman

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of overman

1200–1250; Middle English (noun); see over-, man

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:

The overwhelming tendency was to deploy one at the back and one in midfield, a 3-5-2 that allowed a side to overman in the centre of its defensive and midfield thirds.

From The Guardian Feb. 21, 2017

The 36-year-old was an overman, the third in rank of the officers down the pit.

From BBC Nov. 3, 2016

Ulric received his instructions in silence and remained behind with Lawrence, while the others, conducted by the overman, began the descent.

From Success and How He Won It by E. T. C. (Edward Theodore Chalmers) Werner

"Yes, Mr. Starr, he is a good and affectionate son," replied the old overman earnestly.

From The Underground City, or, the Child of the Cavern by Jules Verne

As to the old overman, he was already convinced.

From The Underground City, or, the Child of the Cavern by Jules Verne

Like any great short story, Scholz’s shows us the truth: Half-assed overmen rule the clever beasts.

From Slate Aug. 5, 2023

The old gentleman asked me to take a few overmen a trip.

From Looking Seaward Again by Walter Runciman

Their kings and their tyrants alike were just men set in front of other men or usurping a leadership; they were not quasi-divine overmen like Pharaoh or Minos or the monarchs of Mesopotamia.

From A Short History of the World by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

Then the overmen of the different pits came forward to shake hands with him, whilst the miners waved their caps, shouting, "Farewell, James Starr, our master and our friend!"

From The Underground City, or, the Child of the Cavern by Jules Verne

Heartrending were the wailings and shrieks and moanings which arose at this announcement, confirmed by the viewer and overmen.

From The Mines and its Wonders by William Henry Giles Kingston

“We’re not playing great all the time, we’re a little overmanned at times.”

From Seattle Times Feb. 18, 2022

As soon as I saw Google, I lost the will to read because I was so overmanned.

From Salon Jul. 4, 2016

The late Alan Walters, her chief economic adviser, believed a key source of inflation and the weak economy was the amount of taxpayers' money being poured into overmanned, old-fashioned, government-owned industry.

From The Guardian Aug. 22, 2014

Poor countries also benefit from moving workers out of overmanned farms and into factories, where they are many times more productive.

From Economist Feb. 14, 2013

The 'Virginia City Enterprise' was not overmanned, and the new-comer did all sorts of odd jobs, finding time now and then to write a sketch which seemed important enough to permit of his signature.

From Inquiries and Opinions by Brander Matthews

Organized labor, in turn, will have to be more flexible on wages and be willing to give up rigid work rules that lead to overmanning and inefficiency.

From Time Magazine Archive

The rescue plan, however, does not call for cutting back employment, though overmanning is one of Leyland's chief handicaps.

From Time Magazine Archive

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