adjective
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open to view; observable
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law open; deliberate. Criminal intent may be inferred from an overt act
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of overt
1275–1325; Middle English < Old French, past participle of ouvrir to open < Vulgar Latin *ōperīre, for Latin aperīre
Explanation
Overt means open and done in plain sight. An overt demand for an increase in your allowance probably won't work; instead, try praising your parents' generosity and dropping hints about how high prices are these days. If you speak French, remember that overt is the same as the French ouvert "open." If you don't speak French, give up all hope of ever learning this word. Just kidding — forgive the overt attempt at humor. English speakers, here's your trick for remembering the difference between overt and covert: overt = "open"; covert = "covered."
Vocabulary lists containing overt
The Constitution of the United States
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Vocabulary from the Constitution of the United States
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The Kite Runner
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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.
“It’s a pretty overt reference to the deaths of young Black men in Vietnam,” said Hanson.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026
“Our overt preference is to buy American,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last year as he introduced Drone Dominance, a $1.1 billion Pentagon program to purchase small, lethal drones.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
But the implication of overt coercion is always bubbling beneath the surface.
From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026
Iran's foreign ministry condemned the attack on its oil tankers as "an overt threat to regional and international peace and security," saying that they "increase the dangers of tensions in the region".
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
Egged on by scheming courtiers and generals, relations between Atawallpa and Washkar spent several years swinging through the emotional valence from concealed suspicion to overt hostility.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
