superimposed

American  

[soo-per-im-pohzd] / ˌsu pər ɪmˈpoʊzd /

adjective

1. being or relating to something that is placed over something else, usually characterized by some degree of transparency so that both the background and foreground objects are visible.

   The title credits appeared over the dusky opening scene in superimposed white text.

2. Geology. (of a stream or drainage system) having a course not adjusted to the structure of the rocks presently undergoing erosion but determined instead by a prior erosion cycle or by formerly overlying rocks or sediments.

3. Botany. (of a plant part) growing one over another, but separately, as in layers.

   The superimposed whorls of petals give these begonia blossoms a roselike appearance.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of superimpose.

Etymology

Origin of superimposed

First recorded in 1795–1805; superimpose + -ed ²

Example Sentences

A flash of superimposed text identifies them as “*Very certified*, extremely serious ballet experts.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Chirality refers to objects that cannot be superimposed on their mirror images, like left and right hands.

From Science Daily • Mar. 21, 2026

The result was fully in character, photographed in murky black-and-white for a worldwide online audience, and layered with Lynchian imagery and juxtapositions: smoke, fire, strange objects and dead animals superimposed over the band.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2025

To give an idea of the size of the Palisades fire, we have superimposed it on to maps of New York and London.

From BBC • Jan. 8, 2025

All these things—the flags, the pitch pipe songs, the British Empire and the princesses, the war orphans, even the strappings —are superimposed against the ominous navy-blue background of Miss Lumley’s invisible bloomers.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood