superimpose
Americanverb (used with object)
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to impose, place, or set over, above, or on something else.
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to put or join as an addition (usually followed by on orupon ).
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to display or print (an image or text) over another image so that both are visible at once.
You can superimpose open captions on your videos with this free software.
verb
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to set or place on or over something else
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to add (to)
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of superimpose
Explanation
Superimpose means laying one thing on top of another. It's often used to describe images in a photo collage — like the superimposed image of a skyscraper on the surface of the moon. The verb superimpose is typically used in graphics or photography to describe how images can be put on top of one another for dramatic effect. Use it also to show adding your own take on something, or when you try to have an impact on someone's behavior: "She tried to superimpose her ideas of perfection onto the lazy habits of her children."
Vocabulary lists containing superimpose
Power Prefix: super-
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"What, of This Goldfish, Would You Wish?" Vocabulary from the short story
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100 SAT words Beginning with "S"
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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.
The app’s remix feature allowed users to superimpose the likeness of their friends or celebrities into existing AI-generated video or create brand new ones.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026
The agency “did not want to intervene and superimpose last-minute, unvetted judgment into the process, as this could have been perceived as manipulating the data,” it said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 30, 2025
"Then we ask: Are there perturbations, or tiny changes in the flow of plasma, that we could superimpose on top of this average structure, that might grow to cause the sun's magnetic field?"
From Science Daily • May 22, 2024
The technology is able to superimpose crime scene photos down to the exact measurements because the photo will align with the data, Liscio said.
From Seattle Times • Dec. 30, 2023
At the right altitude, he could almost superimpose the luminous map on his visor over the actual Dublin streets below him.
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
Definitions 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.
