overman

[ noun oh-ver-muh n for 1, oh-ver-man for 2; verb oh-ver-man ]

/ noun ˈoʊ vər mən for 1, ˈoʊ vərˌmæn for 2; verb ˌoʊ vərˈmæn /

noun, plural o·ver·men [oh-ver-muh n for 1; oh-ver-men for 2] /ˈoʊ vər mən for 1; ˈoʊ vərˌmɛn for 2/.

a foreman, supervisor, or overseer.

a superman.

verb (used with object), o·ver·manned, o·ver·man·ning.

to oversupply with men, especially for service: Indiscriminate hiring had overmanned the factory.

Nearby words

Origin of overman

1200–1250; Middle English (noun); see over-, man¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for overman

At thirty he was overman of the Dochart pit, the most important in the Aberfoyle colliery.
The Underground City|Jules Verne
Mr. Carlton, the viewer, looked vexed and annoyed; he was asking the overman to send to a mine a few miles off for their engineer.
Charlie Scott|Unknown
The racial will, as we have seen, must be taught to aim at the Overman.
Prophets of Dissent|Otto Heller
A superior tenant rarely sent more than two men to the bedrip, or two men and an overman, that is a foreman.
Nooks and Corners of English Life, Past and Present|John Timbs

No overman would be here without his knowledge; and try how he would to find some reason for the sound, he was still at fault.
Son Philip|George Manville Fenn

British Dictionary definitions for overman

overman

verb (ˌəʊvəˈmæn) -mans, -manning or -manned

(tr) to supply with an excessive number of men

noun (ˈəʊvəˌmæn) plural -men

a man who oversees others

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