overlie
Americanverb (used with object)
-
overlies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
overlay,
past
-
overlain,
past participle
-
overlying
present participle
-
to lie over or upon, as a covering or stratum.
-
to smother (an infant) by lying on them, as in sleep.
verb
-
to lie or rest upon Compare overlay
-
to kill (a baby or newborn animal) by lying upon it
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
overliesimple
-
overliessimple
-
have overlainperfect
-
has overlainperfect
-
am overlyingprogressive
-
are overlyingprogressive
-
is overlyingprogressive
-
have been overlyingperfect progressive
-
has been overlyingperfect progressive
Past
-
overlaysimple
-
had overlainperfect
-
was overlyingprogressive
-
were overlyingprogressive
-
had been overlyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of overlie
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English overlien, overliggen; see over-, lie 2
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:
“Indeed, with the discovery that both cartouches of Ay overlie original cartouches of Tutankhamun, we have the veritable smoking gun,” he said.
From New York Times ● Oct. 30, 2022
The researchers combined reams of geologic data from 2003 to 2017 to determine where U.S. forests and shrublands overlie bedrock that roots could feasibly reach.
From Scientific American ● Dec. 29, 2021
However, near the bottom horizontal strata overlie tilted strata.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017
Schmidt calculates that these tumbled patches of ice probably overlie pockets of liquid water trapped in the shifting ice.
From Slate ● Dec. 19, 2014
High clouds temporarily overlie about a third of the GRS.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
A deep fracture in the Tibetan Plateau known as the Cona-Sangri rift overlies the tear—a tantalizing hint that the tumult in the Indian Plate’s underbelly might somehow ripple to the surface.
From Science Magazine ● Jan. 9, 2024
That’s a very specific cause of cardiac arrest that occurs when there is blunt force trauma to the heart, or the chest wall that overlies the heart.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2023
So they wet the skin that overlies this big balloon of blood right behind their nostrils.
From Slate ● Jan. 28, 2023
When a strong jet streak overlies a developing low-pressure system, it creates a feedback pattern that makes warm air rise at an increasing rate.
From Scientific American ● Jan. 28, 2022
The exciting moment in boring a well is when a drill is penetrating the upper covering of sand rock which overlies the oil.
From Scientific American Supplement, No. 388, June 9, 1883 by Various
Talarico, a former teacher and Presbyterian seminarian, has courted voters with a populist economic pitch blended with an overlay of Christian messaging to “love thy neighbor.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 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
Wright adopted Caravaggio’s lead white ground and midbrown overlay, as well as his flushed cheeks, pale necks and fleshy pink velvets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 14, 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
I wrote the letter on overlay tissue paper.
From "Nine Stories" by J. D. Salinger
Its unfurling will reveal an image of the cosmos overlain with blooming flowers and splintered prisms emanating rainbows.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
In many Baltic cemeteries horses were buried separately from humans, but there are numerous examples of horses with overlain human cremations.
From Science Daily ● May 17, 2024
Tornadoes are born of severe thunderstorms when warm humid surface air is overlain by cooler, drier air aloft, producing what meteorologists call a “conditionally unstable atmosphere.”
From Washington Post ● Dec. 21, 2021
On Thursday, Weinstein lawyer Arthur Aidala walked in wearing a wild, light-colored suit with an overlain windowpane, plaid pattern.
From Washington Times ● Feb. 1, 2020
In all these legends the student of comparative folk-lore traces the ancient mythology, however overlain with later details.
From British Goblins Welsh Folk-lore, Fairy Mythology, Legends and Traditions by Wirt Sikes
National Fuel Gas owns roughly 1.2 million acres in the Appalachian Basin, with substantial mineral ownership overlying the Marcellus and Utica shales.
From Barron's ● Jan. 23, 2026
“Very Delta” traverses time, bringing memories together, creating overlying queer maps that support one another’s experiences and add new pieces to an endless puzzle of connections.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 23, 2025
This month, the researchers will return to Waesche, looking for more rocks that could confirm whether the loss of overlying ice caused Waesche to wake up.
From Science Magazine ● Dec. 2, 2024
When combined with gravity data, the model computes the ocean's depth as well as the thickness of the overlying ice.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 25, 2024
I nodded, my fingers finding the bare skin of his forearms, tracing the muscles and overlying veins there.
From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken
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